airbag off AUDI TT 2013 Owner´s Manual

-Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up against or very near the instru­
ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost 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 . 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.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a
lo t of very important parts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sens ing mat, sensors, wiring, brack­
ets, and more. The function of the system in
the front passenger seat is checked by the
electronic control unit when the ignition is on.
The control unit monitors the Advanced Air­
bag System and turns the airbag indicator
light on when a malfunction in the system
components is detected. The function of the
airbag indicator light is described in greater
detail below. Because the front passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad­
vanced Airbag System, you must take care to
prevent it from being damaged. Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced Airbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanced Airbag System
consists of the following:
- Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure vehicle acceleration/deceleration
to provide information to the Advanced Air­
bag System about the severity of the crash.
-An electronic control unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts .
The control unit "decides" whether to fire
the front airbags based on the information
r eceived from the crash sensors. The control
Airbag system 115
unit also "decides" whether the safety belt
pretensioners should be activated.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator for
the driver inside the steering wheel hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator in­
side the instrument panel for the front pas­
senger.
- A weight-sensing mat under the upholstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat.
The inform ation registered is sent continu­
ously to the electronic control unit to regu­
late deployment of the front Advanced Air­
bag on the passenger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster
c:;. page 119.
-The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on in the center of the instru­
ment panel
c:;. page 119, fig. 107 and tells
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been turned off.
- A sensor below the safety belt latch for the
front seat passenger to measure the tension
on the safety belt. The tension on the safety
belt and the weight registered by the
weight-sensing mat help the control unit
"decide" whether the front airbag for the
front passenger seat should be turned off or
not
c:;. page 110, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driv­
er and for the front seat passenger that
senses whether that safety belt is latched or
not and transmits this information to the
electronic control unit .
.&_ WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can
prevent the front airbag from working
properly.
- Improper repair or disassembly of the
front passenger and driver seat will pre­
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be performed by qualified and properly
-
trained workshop personnel. 111>
•
•

116 Airbag system
-Never remove the front passenger or
driver seat from the vehicle.
- Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat.
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight­
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat. Such
items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and send the
wrong information to the airbag control unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air­ bag System under the passenger seat
could be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper­
ly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical­
ly approved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front pas­
senger seat and prevent the side airbag
in the seat backrest from deploying prop­
erly.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat. The additional padding will prevent
the weight-sensing mat in the seat from
accurately registering the child restraint
or person on the seat and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from function­
ing properly.
- If you must use a child restraint on the
front passenger seat and the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions re­
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something else to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the child re- straint is installed on the front passen­
ger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install child restraint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
side airbags supplement the protection of­
fer ed by the front three-point safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head restraints to help reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of accident and
crash situations. Be sure to read the impor­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need Airbag System
and the activation of the safety belt preten­
s ioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic control unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and deceleration as well as the mass
and stiffness of the vehicle or object involved
in the crash.
When the electronic control unit registers a low severity crash and the safety belt is being
used , the airbag will not deploy.
If the safety
belt is not being used, the first stage deploys,
follow ed by the second stage after a much lat­
er time in t he crash sequence.
If the electronic control unit registers a crash
of medium severity, the first stage of the air­
bag deploys followed by the second stage at a
much later time in the crash sequence -re­
gardless of whether the safety belt is being
u sed or not . In higher severity crashes as reg­
istered by the electronic control unit, both the
first and second stages deploy almost at the
same time.
On the passenger side, regardless of safety
belt use, the airbag will be turned off if the
weight on the passenger seat is less than the
amount programmed in the electronic control
Ill-

unit. The front airbag on the passenger side
will also be turned off if one of the child safe­
ty seats that has been certified under Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been
recogn ized on the seat. The
P A SSEN GER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on to tell
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off
~ page 110, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, a lways wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, yo ur risk of in jury is much highe r.
- You w il l also rece ive serio us in ju ries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in­
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
~ page 108.
More important things to know about
front airbags
F ig . 10 6 Inflated fron t airbags
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position
so that airbags can unfo ld properly and pro­
vide supp lemental protection in a frontal col­
lision.
The front a irbags are designed to provide ad­
d itional protection for the chest and face of
the dr iver and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn properly,
A irba g sy stem 11 7
- the seats have been positioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as possi­
ble from the airbag,
- and the head restraints have been properly
adjusted .
Because ai rb ags inflate in the bli nk of an eye
wi th great force, th ings you have on your lap
or have p laced on the seat co uld become dan­
gerous projectiles, and be pushed into you if
the a irbag inflates.
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased .
T his is norma l and is not ca used by a fi re in
the ve hicle . 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
supplementa l airbag system is designed to re­
duce the like lihood of serious injuries , other
injuries, for example swelling, bru is ing and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags i nflate . A irbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body . Front a irbags
o nl y supp lement the three point safety be lts
i n some fronta l co llisions in which the vehicle
deceleration is high e nough to deploy the air­
bags .
Front airbags will not deploy :
-if the ignition is sw itched off when a crash
o ccur s,
- in side co llisions,
- in rear-end coll isions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash deceleration measu red by
the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for a irbag deployment as
reg istered by the electro nic contro l unit .
The front pass enger airbag will also not
deploy:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu­
pied,
- when the weight on the front passenger seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem ind icates that the front a irbag on the
passenger side has to be turned
off by the II>

118 Airbag sys te m
electronic contro l uni t (the PAS SENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on) .
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase
the risk of serious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the air­
bags inflate, the driver and passengers
must always sit in an upright position,
must not lean against or place any part
of the ir body too close to the area where
the a irbags are located .
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi ­
t ion or too close to the airbag can be se­
riously injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blink of an eye
~page 110.
A WARNING
-
A child in a rearward -facing child sa fety
seat insta lled on the front passenger seat
w ill be seriously injured and can be ki lled if
the front airbag inflates - even wit h an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
-The inflating ai rbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with g reat
force and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, ce nter
arm rest, door o r 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 because of exceptional circ umstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
med iately install the rea r-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating po sition and
have the airb ag sys tem inspec ted by you r
Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of in jury in a c rash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
or by being pushed into yo u as the a irbag
inf lates. -
Never hold things in you r hands o r on
your lap when the veh icle is in use.
- Never transpo rt items on or in t he a rea
of the front passenger seat. Objects
could move into the area of the front air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma­
neuver and become dangerous p rojec­
tiles that can cause ser ious personal in­
jury if the a irbags inf late .
- Never p lace or attach accesso ries o r oth ­
er objects (such as cup hold ers, te le­
phone b ra ck ets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, ove r o r ne ar the are a
marked "AIRBAG" on the s teer ing whee l,
instr ument panel, sea t bac krests o r be ­
tween those areas and yourself. These
objects could ca use in jury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat
to transport objects. Items can a lso
move into the area of the s ide airbag or
the front a irbag during braki ng or in a
sudden maneuve r. Objects near the air­
bags can become projectiles and cause
in jur y, partic ularly when the seat is re­
clined.
- Never tilt the front passenger seat back­
rest forwar d w hen the vehi cle is moving.
An in flating airbag w il l force the ba ck­
rest backwar d an d can injure rear seat o c­
cupants.
A WARNING
=
The fine dust create d when air bags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems fo r people
with a history of asthma or other breath­
i ng cond itions.
- To reduce the risk of breathing problems ,
those with asthma or other respiratory
conditions shou ld get fresh air right
away by getting o ut o f the veh icle or
open ing windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy , wash your hands and face with
mild soap and wate r before eating .
- Be ca reful not to get the dust into your
eyes, o r into any c uts or sc ratches .

-If the residue should get into your eyes,
flush them with water.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
~ Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System : the airbag
monitoring indicator light and the
P ASS EN­
GER AIR BA G OFF
light .
The Advanced Airbag System (including the
electronic control un it, sensor circuits and sys­
tem wiring) is monitored continuously to make sure that it is functioni ng properly
whenever the ignit ion is on . Each time you
turn on the ignition , the airbag monitoring in­
d icator light
I will come on fo r a few seconds
(self diagnos tics) .
The system mu st be inspect ed when the
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignit ion is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on the ignition, o r
- comes on wh ile driving .
If an airbag system malfunction is detected,
the indicator light will first start flashing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately.
If a malfunction occurs that tur ns the front
a irbag on the passenger side off, the
P A SSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght will come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
_& WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
properly cannot provide supp lemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash .
- If the airbag indica tor light comes on, it
means that there may be someth ing
wrong wit h the Advanced Ai rbag System.
-
A irba g sy stem 119
It is possible that the airbag wi ll inflate
when it is not supposed to, or will not in­
flate when it should.
- Have the airbag system inspected imme­
diate ly by your Audi dealer.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
F ig . 107 Sect io n fro m t he in str ument pa nel: PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG O FF lig ht
The PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center of the instrument panel
~ fig . 107 .
The PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on and stay on to tell you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger s ide has been
turned off by the electron ic control unit . Each
t ime you turn on the ignit ion , the
PA SS EN­
GER A IR BAG OFF
light will f lash for a few
seco nds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occup ied,
- w ill stay on if the re is a small ch ild or child
restrai nt on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
we ight-sensing mat .
The
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF l ight must
come on and sta y on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front
seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing chi ld restraint has been in-
stalled on the front passenger seat, or ..,.

120 Airbag system
- the weight registered on the front passen­
ger seat is equa l to or less than the com­
bined weight of a typical 1 year-old restrain­
ed in one of the rear-facing or forward-fac­
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which the
Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle was
certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS ­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Nev­
er insta ll a rearward-facing child restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any kind of child restraint is at one
of the seat ing positions on the rear seat
¢ page 110, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 130, 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 certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignition is on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light does not appear and not stay on all
the time, stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again;
- remove and re install the child restraint.
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
r outed a round the child restraint as descri­
bed in the chi ld restrai nt manufacturer's in ­
struct ions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
ture on the safety belt for the front passen­
ger 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 be lt latch
on the seat can do its job
¢ page 140.
-make sure that th ings that may increase the
weight of the chi ld and child safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen­
ger seat; -
make sure that the safety belt tension sen ­
sor is not blocked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenger seat back and
forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
causes the weight-sensing mat to measure
more weight than is actually on the seat .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on
and does not stay on con­
t inu ously (when 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. Have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer immediately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and make sure that the child is properly restra in­
ed in a ch ild restraint that is appropriate for
its s ize and age.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignition is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenge r seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds w hile d riving, un­
der these circumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenge r seat is
properly seated on the cente r of the sea t
cushion with his or her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
¢ page 91, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions,
- the adult is not tak ing we ight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
abovethefrontpassengerdooG
- t he sa fe ty belt is being properly worn and
t hat there is not a lot o f sla ck in the safety
be lt webbing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
things that may cause an incorrect reading
or impression on the weight-sensing mat
under the upho lstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat, .,.

-a safety be lt extender has not been left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger
seat .
I n addition to the
P ASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel,
the message
PA SSENGE R AIR BAG OFF or
PASSENGER AI R BAG ON will briefly appear
in the instrument cluster display. Th is is to in­
form 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 functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
means that there may be someth ing
wrong with the Advanced Airbag System .
It is possible that the airbag will inflate
when it is not supposed to, or w ill not in­
flate when it should.
- Have the airbag system inspected imme­
diately by your Aud i dealer.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without
a child restra int, in a rearward-facing child
safety seat or in a forward-facing chi ld re­
straint that has not been properly insta lled
wi ll be seriously injured and can be ki lled .
- Even though your veh icle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll children, especially 12
years and younger, a lways ride on the
back seat properly restrained for their
age and size.
- Always install forward or rear-facing
child safety seats on the rear seat -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you must install a rearward-facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­ ces and the
PAS SENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme-
A irbag system 12 1
diately install the rear- facing child safety
seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
deale r.
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rear­
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much p ressu re on the weight-sensing
mat in the seat and reg ister more weight
than is a ctually on the seat. The heavier
weight regis tered can make the system
wo rk as tho ugh an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be suppressed causing serious or
even fata l injury to the ch ild.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
m ust install a forward-fac ing ch ild re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust­
ment range, as fa r away from the a irbag
as poss ible. The backrest must be ad just­
ed to an upright pos ition. Make sure that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever the ignition is switched on .
A WARNING
-
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an ad ult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, make sure the adu lt is properly seated and restra ined at
one of the rear seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea ler before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
(l) Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passe nger side will be
turned off, and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
will stay on.
•
•

124 Airbag sys te m
about the same height in the instrument pan ­
e l underneath the glove compartment.
The knee a irbag offers add it iona l pro tect ion
to the driver's and passenger 's knees and up­
per and lower thigh areas and supp lements
the protection by the safety be lts .
I f the front airbags deploy , the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal co llisions when the de­
p loyment thresho ld stored in the cont rol unit
is met ¢
page 117, More important things to
know about front airbags .
In addi tion to their normal safety function,
safety belts he lp keep the driver or front pas ­
senger in position in a frontal collisio n so that
the airbags can prov ide supplemental protec­
tion.
The airbag system is not a s ubstitute for yo ur
safety be lt . Rather, it is part of the overall oc ­
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly . Th is
i s why you shou ld always wear you r safety
be lt, not just because the law requires you to
do so ¢
page 100, General notes.
The safety belt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenger have switches that te ll the a ir­
bag control module if the safety belt is being
used or not. If the safety belt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly highe r
rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be­
ing used . Therefore, in a partic ular collision , it
is possible that an airbag will not deploy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being used but will inflate at the position where the
safety belt is not be ing used.
Remembe r too, airbags will deploy only once
and on ly in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety belts are always there to offer protec­
tion in those acc idents in which airbags are
n ot supposed to deploy or when they have a l­
ready deployed, fo r example whe n your veh i­
cle str ikes or is struck by another after the
fi rs t collis io n. This is
just one of the reasons why an airbag is
not a s ubstitute for the safety be lt. The airbag
system works most effect ively when used with
the safety belts. Therefore, always wear yo ur
safety belts correct ly.
It is important to remember that w hil e the
s u pplementa l knee airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
other injur ies, for example, swelling, bru is ing,
minor abrasions and friction bu rns can a lso
occur when an airbag inflates.
The knee airbag system basically consi sts
of:
- The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable a irbags (a irbag and gas gen-
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenge r
- The a irbag ind icator light in the instrument
panel
The knee airbag sy ste m w ill not depl oy :
- when the ignition is t urned off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measured by the contro l unit is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rea r-end co llisions
- in rollove rs
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn -
ing/ind icator light is on)
¢ page 15.
A WARNING
-Safety belts and th e airbag system can
only provide pro te ction when occupa nts
a re in the proper se ating posi tion
<=:>page 117.
- If the airbag ind icator light come s when
the vehicle is be ing used, have the sys­
tem inspected immediate ly by yo ur au ­
thor ized A udi dealer.
-

and minor abrasions can also be associated
with deployed side airbags. Remember too,
side airbags will deploy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents -your safety belts
are always there to offer protect ion.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi ­
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa­
tion. In some collisions, both front and side
a irbags may inflate . Remember too, that air ­
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al­
ways there to offer protect ion in those acci­
dents in wh ic h airbags are not supposed to
deploy or w hen they have already deployed .
The side airbag system will not depl oy :
- when the ignition is turned off
- in side collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in rear-end collisions
- in ro llovers.
I n some types o f acc idents the front airbags
and side airbags may be triggered together.
& WARNING
-Safety belts and the a irbag system will
only provide protection when occ upants
are in the proper seating posit ion
c') page 128.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on
when the vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Aud i dealer. The a irbag may
not wo rk p roperly when the vehicle ac­
c ele ra tion in a side co llision is h igh
enough to ac tiva te the airbag.
.
A irba g sy stem 12 7
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.
F ig . 1 11 Inflated side airbags on left side of vehicle
8
i
When the system is triggered, t he a irbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat surface area ma rked
"AIR­
BAG". It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger. In order to help provide
th is add itiona l protection, the side airbag
must inflate within a fraction of a second at
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup­
plementa l side airbag could injure you if your
seat ing pos ition is not proper or up right o r if
items are loca ted in the area where the s up­
plementa l side airbag expands. This applies
especially to chi ldren ¢
page 130, Child Safe­
ty .
Supplemental side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door panel on the side
of the vehicle that is struck in certain side col­
lis ion ¢
fig. 111.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper
part of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag de­
ploys . This is normal and does not mean there
is a fire in the vehicle.

-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
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 air­
bag system inspected immediately by
your Audi dealer.
_& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install 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 manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child 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 airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
Child Safety 131
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates . In addition, the system
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, all children, espe­ cially those 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained
for their age and si ze. The airbag on the pas­
senger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to ride . The front
seat is not the safest place for a child in a for­
ward-facing child safety seat. It can be a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child
in a rearward-facing seat .
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion 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 child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the ..,.
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