airbag VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 2004 Owner's Guide

Fig. 25 Section from the instrumen t pone l: PAS­SENGER BAG OFF
The PASSENGER BAG fig . 25.
The PASSENGER come on and stay on to
burns out. the airbag monitoring indicator
not change the the front airbag on the passenger side works, it no longer be possible to usc the PASSENGER BAG light to verify that the airbag on/off status is correc t for the occupant on the front passenger seat. Have the a irbag system in ­
specte d immediately by your authorized Volk­swagen deal er or qualifi ed workshop.
The PASSENGER blink for
up to long 9 seconds when:
the ignition is switched on and
the re is a change in the weight measured b y the weight-sensing mat in the fro nt passenger sca t that determines w hethe r the Advanced
A irbag on the passenger side can d eploy or be lllrned off.
Af te r
the light stops
light is proper for the siz e. age, and weight of the occupant on the front passenger seat.
ways make sure that th e safety for the fron t passenger scat is prope rly fastened.
The PASSENGER BAG light show the correc t status o f th e front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side
stay on if the front passenger seat is no t occup ied,
s ta y on if the combined weight of an in­
fant up t o about one year of age in one of the reanvard-fa cing or fonva rd-faci ng child re­
straints in Federa l Motor with whic h th e Advanc ed Airbag
Sys te m in your vehicl e was certified. is regis­tered by the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­senger seat. For a listin g of the chil d restraints
t h a t
were used to certi fy your vehicle's compli­a nce with the Safety
registered by the weight­sensing
The BAG light must come
on and stay on if the ignition is on and
a car bed has been o n the front pas­senger seat. or
a reanvard-facingchild restraint has been in­
a forward-facing child restra int has been in ­
and if the weig ht reg istered on the front pas­senger seat is equal to or less than the combine d weight o f a ty pical year-o ld infant restrained in one of the reanvard-facin g or fonvard-facing c hild restraints in Federall'v1 otor Safe ty in your vehicl e certified.
the front passenger seat is not occupi ed . the
front passenge r a irbag BAG stay on. Never on the fr o nt passenger seat, the safest p lace for in any kind of page
page 53,
Airbag system 41

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If th e PASSENGER AIR BAG comes on
w hen one o f th e conditio ns listed above is m et,
b e sure to check the light ta in that th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
does not appear and not stay on
reactivate th e sys te m by turning the ign ition
orr a nd th e n turning it on again ;
re move and th e child re stra int. Make
sure that the c hild restraint is pro p erly
ufacture r's in str u ctions;
make sure th at the conve rtibl e lockin g ture on the safety
Th e belt must no t be loose or have loops of slack so tha t th e sensor b elow the safe ty belt lat ch on the sea t can do its job 63.
m ake sure th at things that m ay increase th e weight o f the chil d and ch ild seat are not b e in g transp orted on the front passenger seat;
make sure tha t th e sa fe ty belt te nsion sen sor is no t blocke d. the sa fe ty la tc h on the
fr o nt passenger seat back and fo rth,
make sure that no thin g can int erf ere w ith the
safe ty belt buckles and that they are no t str ucte d.
If a strap o r tether is being used t o tie th e
c hi ld seat to th e front passenger scat, make sure tha t it is no t so tight that it c auses the sen sin g m at m easure m ore weig h t than is o n the seal.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light
light docs not com e o n and does no t stay on continuous ly (when th e ig niti on i s swi tc h ed on).
42 Airbag sys te m
take the c hild restrai nt off the front passenger scat and
your autho rized Volkswagen dealer o r q ualified wor ks hop immedia te ly.
move th e c hild to a rear seat posit io n and make su re that the
light should come on
The PASSENGER AIR BAG should NOT
come o n when the ign ition i s on and an adult is
s ilting in p ro per position on the front pa sse nger seat. If the PASSENGER AIR BAG lig ht comes o n and on u nder these circ um -sta nces. make su re that:
the adul t on the front passenge r scat is seat e d on the cente r o f the seat cushio n with
h is or her back up against th e back rest and th e
b ackres t is not page
the adult is not taking weigh t orr the seat by
hold ing on to the passenger assis t h andle above the fro nt passenger door or supporting th eir weig ht o n the armrest or hold ing o nt o the assist handle on th e in strument
th e safe ty belt is bei ng properly worn and that th e re is n ot in the safe ty belt
webb ing.
a ccessory seat cove rs or c u shions o r other th ings that m ay cause
passe nger seat.
is mov in g. the PASSENGER AIR BAG light blinks for about 5 seconds to catch th e driver's it is
s a fe to do s o and c heck the steps described

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
A n ai rbag sys te m tha t i s no t func ti o nin g erl y cannot provi de s upplemental pro tec tio n
in a fronta l crash .
th e a ir bag indi cato r
sib lc that th e airb ag
wo rksh op.
o r be seriou sly injure d an d ca n b e kill ed .
Even tho ugh your vehi cle i s with Advance d Air bag make certain
that chil dre n, es pecia lly 12 years yo unge r, always ride on th e back seat p roper ly
res tra ined fo r th eir age and size.
A lways install fo rward o r rea nvard -facing
c hild seats o n th e re a r seat- eve n with an vance d Airbag Sys te m .
a rearward - faci ng chil d scat on the fro nt passenger seat because o f
BAG does not com e on an d stay o n, immedi ate ly
s h op.
A tig ht tethe r or other str a p o n a faci ng ch ild res tra int attach ed t o the fro nt se nger seat ca n put to o much press ure on the
we ight-se nsing mat in the se a t and reg is te r more a weight than is on th e seat. The
h ea vier weig ht regis tere d can make the
sys te m w ork as thou gh an adult were on th e seat a nd dep loy th e Advance d Air bag w he n it
m ust b e s uppresse d causin g se rious o r eve n
fata l inju ry to the c hild .
An imp roperly in sta lled child res tra int can
ou sly in ju re or even child -eve n wit h
a n Advanced Airbag Syste m .
in exce pti onal ci rcums ta nces, you must a fo n vard-faci ng chil d restrai nt on the
f ro nt passenger's seat:
-
Fon vard-faci ng c hild seats o n
th e front passe nge r's scat may inte rfere with the deploym en t of th e a irbag and
ca use serio us perso nal inju ry to the child .
- Always
mak e s ure the fonvard-fac ing seat has been des ig ned and certifi ed by its
m anufact ure r f or use o n a fron t seat with a
passenger fron t a nd side airbag.
- Always
the lllr er's in structi o ns provid ed with the seat o r carrier.
- Never
put the fonva rd-faci ng c hild straint up again st o r v ery near th e ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its rearmos t p osi tion in th e seat's fo re a nd aft adjustm ent ra nge, as fa r away from the airbag as p oss ib le before in sta llin g th e war d-faci ng child restra int. The backrest must b e adjuste d to an upright p os ition.
- Alway s ma ke sure t hat n
oth in g preve nts
th e front passe nger's seat from bei ng
m ove d to th e rearmost p osition in its fore and aft adju stment range.
- Never pl
ace additio nal it e m s o n th e seat
th at
te re d b y the weight-se nsin g m at an d can
ca use inju ry in a cras h.
M ake sure th at th e PASSENGER ligh t comes on and stays on
BA G
wo rksh o p .
Airbag sy ste m 43

BAG light does not go off when an adult is sitting on the front
passenger scat after taking the s te p s described
above, make sure the adult i s properl y seated
and r estrai ned at one of the rear seating posi­
tions.
Have the a irba g sys te m inspecte d by your authorized Volkswagen dealer or qualified
workshop before transporting anyon e o n th e
front passenger seat.
be turn ed off, and th e BAG light on.
o r th e front passe nger sa fety belt its elf is buckled and th e
f ru nt seat i s not occ upied . th e co me on.
Repair, care and
re moving, servicing or repairing a
Never cover, obstruct, or change the
steeri ng wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in strument panel or m odify them in any
Never attach any o bj ects such as cup holders or te lephone mountings to the sur­faces covering the airbag units.
For cleaning the horn pad or instrument panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one moi st­
e ned w ith plain water. Solvents or cleaners
co uld damage the airbag cover or change the
s tiffn ess or strengt h of the material so that the
a irbag cannot deploy and protect properly.
Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of the a irba g system.
All work on the steering wheel, instrument panel, front seats or ele ctri cal sys tem (in-
44 Airbag system
{ continu ed )
eluding the installation of audio equipment ,
ce llular te lephones and C B radios, etc.) must be performed by a qualified tech nici an who
h as the training and special equipment neces­
sary.
For any work on the airbag s ys te m , we strongly recommend that yo u see you r autho­rized Volkswagen dealer or qualified work­
shop.
Never modify the front bumper or parts of the vehicl e body.
Alwa ys make sure that the s ide airbag can inflate witho ut interference:
Neve r scat covers or rep lacement upholstery over the front scat backs that have no t been specifically approved by Volkswagen.
Never use additional seat cushions that cover the areas where t11e sid e a irba gs in­
flate .
Damage to the original scat cove rs or to
th o scam in the area of tho side airbag module must always be re p ai red immedi­ate ly by an authorized Volkswagen deale r or qualified workshop.
The airbag sy stem can be activated only
o n ce. After an airba g has inflated, it must be replaced.
trained t echnician who has th e necessary
too ls and diagnostic equipment to properly

replace any airbag in your vehicle and assure system effectiveness in a crash.
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
Never permit salvaged or recycled ai rb ags
to be installed in your
low ering th e veh icle, changing the
s tiffness of th e suspe nsion , including the spring s, suspe nsion struts, shock absorber s etc.
ca n change th e forces that are meas ured by th e
air bag senso rs and sen t to the electron ic control
unit. s u sp ensio n chang es for ample, increase the force level s m eas ured by the
sensors and make the airb ag system deploy in
cras hes in wh ic h it wou ld no t dep loy if th e
c h a nges had no t bee n made. kind s of ch a nges may reduce the force leve ls mea sured by the senso rs and preve nt the airbag from ploying whe n it should.
The Advanced Airbag will not work the
way it s houl d if th e o ptional safety belt exte nder is not removed from the safety belt latch when
the seat i s occup ie d and the sa fe ty belt is not bei ng used. Leaving th e extender attach ed to the safety belt buck le when the front seat is
s ig na l the airbag control unit that the front seat is occup ied and that the sa fety belt is being used. The elec tron ic co ntro l unit for the airbag system
will then rece ive incorrect information that will cause the safe ty belt pretens ioner to deploy
has deployed can not be re pair ed.
T he entir e safety belt must be rep laced . For that
rea son, a lways re move the sa fety belt exte nde r
w hen it is not nee ded and stow it sa fely
23. In ad d ition, the safet y belt extender must never be used to secure child rest raint s to
th e front passenge r seat.
T he se ns
ors in the safety belt buckle for the driver and front passenge r seat tell th e troni c control module if the safe ty belt is latc hed or If th e sa fe ty belt is being used, the front airbag
will deploy
at a sl ightly highe r rate of hi cle dece leration than if the sa fe ty belt is not
b eing used . Therefore , in a particular collision, it
i s possible that an airbag will not deplo y at a seatin g position where the safety belt is being
u sed but infla te at the position where the safe ty belt is not bei ng use d. It is important that n othing interfere with the safety belt buck les so
that the sensors can send the correct tion abou t safety belt use to the elec tron ic
C hanging the ve hicl e's suspension including
us e of unapproved tire-rim combinations ca n change Advanced Airbag performance and crease the risk of se rious personal injury in a
c ras h.
Never install s uspension components that do not h ave the same performance ist ics as th e components originally in stalled on your ve hicl e.
Never use tire-rim combin a ti o ns th at have not been approved by Volkswage n.
Leaving the optional safety belt extender tached to th e safety belt latch on the front senger seat when the safety belt is not being
u se d will prevent the Adva nced fro m functioning properl y and ca n in crease the risk of se riou s pe rso nal injury in a
Always remove the safety belt extende r
w hen it is not needed and stow it safely whe n
it is not bei ng used with the safety belt.
Never use th e safety belt exte nder to secure
a c hild restraint at any seating position.
buckle and the cente r conso le can cause the sensors
Airbag system 45

to vehic les: with side airbags
Description of side airbags
Always make sure that nothing can inter-fe re with the safety be lt buckles and that they are not
The sid e airbag system ca n provid e supplemental protection to properly
strain ed fron t seat occupant s.
Fig. 26 a irbag in drive r seat
The side air b ag s are in the backr est p addin g in the fig. 26 . ve hicl e m ay als o b e
equipped w ith optiona l sid e ai r bags for the re a r
outs id e po siti ons.Th e ge nera l lo cat io n is in the upper regio n of the backrests .
The side airbag system basically consis ts of:
the e lectroni c co ntro l module with grated sensors, pre ssure sen so rs in the front doors and re a r s ide impact sensors (only four doors ve hicle).
the two side airbags locate d in the s ides of the fro nt backre sts a ir ba gs
opti ona l s id e a irbags for the outboard rear seats (only four door s ve hicle).
3) W here ap plicabl e
46 Airbag system
the airbag warning light in the in strument clu ster.
The airb ag syste m is monitore d electroni cally to make certain that it is fun ctioning properly at all times. Ea ch time you turn on th e ig nition, the
a irba g syste m indi cator light will come on fo r a
few s e conds (self diagnostic s).
Th e side
airbag s ys te m supplements the s afet y
b elt s and can help to reduce the ris k of injury to the dri ver's and passenge r's and the rear
outboard3> passen ge r's upper to rs o on the s ide
o f the ve hicl e that is st ruck in a s ide colli sio n. The a irb ag infl ates onl y in sid e impacts and o nl y
w he n th e ve hicle accele rati on r egis te re d by the
co ntrol unit is hi gh enough. If thi s rate is be lo w
th e re fe re nce valu e progr ammed into the control unit. the s ide airb ags will not be tri gge re d , ev en
th oug h the car m ay be bad ly da m ag ed a s a re su lt
o f the c ollis ion .
sib le angle of impa c t, s ince th e c ircumsta nce s
will v ary consid era bly betw een one collisio n and ano ther. Important fac tor s includ e, Fo r e xample, the nature (hard or soft) oft h e impacting o bject, the ang le of impact, ve hicl e speed, e tc . s afe ty in stru ctions fo r the sid e a irbag
Aside from their normal safety function, sa fe ty
b elt s work to he lp keep the driver or front se n ge r in po sition in sid e co llision so that the
s ide airb ags c an pro vid e pro tection whe n th ey
inflate. Safety belt s als o help to keep rear seat
passenge rs in pos ition so tha t opti onal seat

sid e ca n pro vide prot ection in a side c ollision in wh ic h the sid e airbag infl ates.
Th e a irba g sys
tem is not a sub stitut e for your safet y belt. Rath er, it is part of th e pant res traint syste m in you r ve hicle. Always member that th e ai rba g sys te m can only help protect you if yo u are wea ring you r safety belt
a nd wearin g it pro perly. This is another reaso n
w hy you sh ould alwa ys wear your safet y be lts, no t ju st b eca use the la w requires yo u to do so 13, belts".
is important to rem ember th at whil e the
brui sing, and minor abrasio ns ca n als o be associated with
these a irb ags. Rem ember too , s id e airb ags will de ploy onl y on ce and only in certain kind s of
damage, re pai r costs o r eve n the la ck of ve hicl e damage is not n ecessa rily an ind ication of proper air bag operation . some collisio ns,
b ot h front and sid e airbags may inflate. m emb er too, airbags d e ploy only o nce
and onl y in certa in kinds of co llisio ns-your
safe ty belt s are always there to offer protect ion in
thos e acc ident s in whi ch ai rbags not su p-
2.1 Safety first
po sed to deploy or w hen they have already plo ye d.
The sid e airbag sys te m will not inflat e:
in sid e collisio ns w hen th e accelera tion
in fron t-end collisio ns,
in rear-end collisio ns,
in rollove rs.
so me types of accidents th e fron t a irbags,
S ide airb ags sid e bags may be tri gge red toget her.
Safety belts and th e airbag sys te m will only
prov ide protection when occupant s are in the correc t seatin g page 13 , belts".
spec te d immediately by your au thorized
Airbag system 47

side oirbog on left side of vehicle
Suppl em ental sid e ai rbag s infl ate betw een the occupant and the door panel on the sid e of the
ve hic le is s truck in ce rtain sid e collision 27.
A pplies to ve hicl es: with side o irbogs
m enta l s id e a irbag injure you if your seatin g position is not proper o r upri ght o r i f
it e m s are locate d in the a re a where the menta l s id e a irbag inflates. This a pplies cially to page 53, "Child
A lth oug h th ey arc no t a soft pill ow, they can the i mpac t and in thi s w ay th ey can help r educe the risk of in ju ry to th e upper part of the body.
A fin e dust dev elop whe n th e
safety instructions for the side airbag system
A irb ags are only supplemental rest raints. Alway s prop erly wear safety belts and
rid e a proper seating
There is a lot tha t you and your p asse nge rs mus t
kno w and do to he lp the safe ty and airbags do their jo b to provid e supple m ental protection.
T he s ide
airbags installed for the front seating positio ns and th e rear outboard have
been des igned and cert ified to he lp reduce the risk of injury th a t can b e caused by air bag s w he n
th ey inflat e. particularl y wh en the occupant
To he lp red uce th e risk of injury w he n the supple m ental s id e airbag inflates,
Always sit in an upright posit ion and do not lean against the area whe re the mental s id e airbag is locate d .
WARNING
An inflatin g s ide airbag can cause serious or fatal injury. Impro perl y wearing safety belt s
Never let a c hil d o r a nyone els e rest their
h ead against th e side trim panel in th e area
W here applic able
48 Airbag system

flates.
- Alway s
make sure that safety belts are wor n correctly,
- Never le t a nyo ne s itting in the front
seat put th e ir hand o ut of the window.
Always make sure th at the sid e airbag can
inflat e without interferen ce:
- Neve r in stall se
at covers or re p lace ment upholstery over th e front seat back s that
h ave not bee n specifica lly approved by
- Never use additional seat cushi on s that co ver th e areas where th e s ide airbag s flate.
-
Dam age to the original seat covers or to
th e seam in th e area of th e si de airbag
modul e must alwa ys be repaired ate ly by an authorized
betwee n yo u and the airbag can crease th e risk of inju ry in colli sion by fering with the way the airb ag unfold s or by bei ng pushed you as th e a irba g infl ates.
- Neve r pla ce or a
ttach accesso ries or other objec ts (su ch as cup hold ers , phone brac ke ts, or eve n bulky ob-
(continued)
jec ts) on the doors , over or n ear th e area marke d on the seat ba ckre sts.
- Acc esso ries or other objects ca n beco me
dangerou s mi ssiles and cause inju ry
ploy ment space between them and the bags or allo w children or other passengers
to travel in thi s po sition.
Always usc the built-in coat hook s only for ligh tweig ht clothing . Never leave any h eavy or sharp-ed ged obj ec ts in the po cke ts that may
int erfe re w ith side ai rba gdeployment and can cause personal injury in a collisio n.
Always prevent the sid e airbags from being damaged by heavy object s knockin g or hitting the sides of the seat backs.
The ai rb ag syste m can onl y be tri gge re d
once. the airbag has bee n tri ggered, the sys tem mus t b e re placed by an authori zed Volkswagen dealer or qualifi ed work shop.
Always have work invo lv in g th e s ide airbag
syste m, re m ova l a nd installa tion of th e airbag
components, orothcrrep air s p erformed by an authorized Volkswagen dealer or qualified works ho p. Otherwise th e a irbag sys te m may
n ot work correctly.
Neve r attempt to modify any com ponents of the airbag syste m in any wa y
Airbag system 49

with s ide curtain protection oirbogs
Description of
oirbogs located above th e windows on the sides .
T he Side
28 . The general locatio n is identified by the wo rd
T he Side airbag sys tem airbag syste m su ppl em ent s the safety belts and can help to reduce the ris k of injury for heads a n d upper to rso on the side of the th at i s s truck in a side collis io n. Th e S ide
gramm ed into the control unit, the Side w ill not be triggered. even thou g h the car may be badly d am aged as a res ult of the collision.
ot her. Import ant fac tors of the impacting object, the angle of impact, ve hicle speed, etc.
bags
Aside fro m their normal safe ty fun ctio n, sa fety belt s work to help keep th e driver or front pas-
pant restraint syste m in you r ve hicle. Always member that the airbag system can o nl y help
yo u should always wear your safety belt s, not just because the law requires you to do so page
Vehicle damage, repair costs o r even the lack of
ve hicl e damage is no t necessarily an indicati on of proper a irbag operation. It is important member t hat while th e Side
kinds of collis ions your sa fet y belt s are always there offer protect ion in those accid ents in which airbags are not sup-posed deploy or when they have already de-ployed.