belt VOLKSWAGEN GOLF PLUS 2004 Owner's Manual

do not provide protectio n for the arms and lower body parts. is important to remember that th e
supple m ental airbag system is designed to reduce the likelihood of serious in juries. However, it is poss ibl e that d ep lo ye d airbag may cause other injurie s such as swelling, bruising, friction burns, and abrasio ns.
A irba gs inflat e in
the blink of an eye, so fast that many people don't eve n realize th a t the airbags
h ave dep loyed. The a irbags will deflate ate ly after deployment s o that th e front occupants can see th roug h the windshield again without terruption.
A ir
bags inflat e with a grea t deal of fo rce. Airbags can cause serious in juries when they infl ate and hit those who are sittin g too close, are out of
mental protection durin g certain kinds of frontal
collisio ns page 67, Safety belts.
Make s
ure that nothing is in the way of the airbags when th ey deploy. For example, items on your lap or o n th e seat could be pushed into yo ur body or fly dangero usly through the passenger ment w he n the ai rbag inflates and cause serio us personal injury.
T he areas outlined in red (dolled lines) and fig. 59 and fig. ind icate the airbag deployment zone. Never place o r aLtach
accessories or other o bjects (such as cup hold ers, telephone bracke ts, note pads, large, heavy or bulky objects) on the doors, on the w indshie ld, over or near the area marked in red (dotted lin es) .
Physical impairm ents and airbags
If yo u have a physica l impairment o r condition that prevents yo u f rom sitting properly o n the driver seat with the safety belt properly fastened
a n d reach ing the pe dal s, special modifications to
your ve hicle may be necess ary. The safety belt and airbagcan only provide optimum p rotection if you
are seated correct ly and can reach the p ed als.
thorized Volkswagen Service Facility or call the
te red by the electron ic control unit. seve rity
depends on speed and decele rati on as well as the mass and stiffn ess of the ve hicle or object in vo lved
in the cras h.
The front airbag s will not inflat e in sid e or rear lisio ns, in roll overs or if the ig niti on is swi tc h ed off .
T he front airbags will not inflate in all frontal sions. The trigger ing of th e a irbag system depends on th e ve hicle dece le rat ion rat e caused by the lisio n and registered by the electr onic control unit. If th is rat e is below the refer ence va lue grammed the control unit, th e a irba gs will not be trigge red, even though the vehicle may be badly damaged as a resu lt of the collision. Vehicl e
damage, repair costs or even the lack of ve hicl e damage is not necessarily an ind ication of whether
a n airbagshould inflat e or not. It is not possib le to
defi ne a range of vehicl e speeds w ill cove r
every possibl e kind and angle of impact that will
a lways trigger the airbag s, s ince th e c ircumstances
will vary con sid erably between one collis ion and a not her. Important facto rs include, for example , the nature (hard or soft) o f the objec t that the hicl e hit s, the angle of impact, ve hicle speed , etc.
When a n airbag deploys, fine dust i s released. This
i s normal and is not caused by fire in the ve hicle.
T hi s d ust is made up mostly of a powder used to
lub ricate the airbags as
s ions when the veh icle deceleration is high enough to depl oy the airbags. Airbags onl y deploy
once, and o nl y i n certain kinds of collisions. safet y belts are always there to offer protectio n in
th ose situ ation s in which airbags are no t s upposed to dep loy, or when they have already deployed; fo r example, when your vehicl e strikes or is st ru ck by
anothe r ve hicle after an initial coll is ion.
is just one o f the reasons w hy a n air bag is supplementary restraint and is not a substitute for a safe ty belt . The airbag syste m wo rks most
The air bags are pan of the overall passive vehicl e safe ty sys tem. The airbag system works most cie ntly when used with properly safety be lts and a proper seatin g posit ion
84 85

Safety equipment
safet y and the s afe ty of your p assenge rs shouldn 't be l eft to c han ce. Advances in tech­
nolo gy have made a numb er of featur es available help reduce the ris k of injury in a collisio n. The follo wi ng are just a few o f th e sa fe ty features for your Volkswag en :
Soph is ticated safety belts for all seating posi­
tions.
Safety belt pretensio ne rs for the outboard seatin g positi ons on the rea r seat o n ve hicl es equipped with optional side a irbags for the o ut­
board rear seating positi ons?.
belt load limit ers fo r all outb oa rd seating
positions.
b elt h e ig ht adju ste rs for the front
belt warning light.
A dvanced front airba g sys tem for driver and fro nt passe nger.
airbag s.
Driver knee airbag .
Airbag indicator light
BAG light.
Ele ctronic cont rol unit and asso ciat ed senso rs.
Head res traint s w ith heig ht adju stment opt i­mized for rear -end collisio ns.
Adju stabl e stee rin g column.
lo w er univer sa l and top te th er an chor­
age s for child restraint s.
These individual safety wo rk tog eth er as sys te m t o help pro tect yo u and your passenger s in w id e rang e of collisio ns. Th ese features can't
work as a syste m if they are no t a lwa ys correctly
adju ste d and prope rly used!
How the Advanced Airbag System components
work together ...
in ­
fan t of about one yea r o f ag e in one of th e c hild
seats u sed to certif y th e Adva nced Airb ag under Federa l Motor dard h as been regis te re d on th e seat. Th e AI sta ys on
Before driv ing
o n th e passenge r side has been turned off
Neve r rely on airbags alone for protec tion.
Even wh en they depl oy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
Airbag s work most effec tive ly when used with properly worn safe ty page 67, Safety
belt
s.
Every person in ve hicle must be prope rl y
se ated on a seal of his or he r own, must prope rl y
fasten the s afety belt belonging to that seat be­
fore th e ve hicle start s to move, and must keep the belt properly fas tened w hil e riding in the ve­
hicle. This applies to the dri ver and all passen-
too close to the steering wheel or instru­
m ent panel will dec rease the effectiveness of th e
airbags and will increase the risk of personal in­
jury in a coUision .
Never sit closer than inche s (25 em ) from the s teering whee l or instrument panel.
If yo u cannot sit upright more th an inch es (25 em) from the steering wheel, investigat e
whether adaptive equipment may be ava ilable
to help you reach the pedal s and increase your seating di stance from the steering wheel.
If you are unres trained , leaning fonvard, sit­
tingsideway s, or out of position in anyway, your ris k of injury is m uch higher.
To reduce the risk of injury w hen an airbag always wear safety belt s properl y.
A n infant in a reanvard-facing child seat in­
s talled in the front passe nge r seat w ill be seri ­
ously injured an d ca n b e killed if the front airbag
inflates-even with an Advanced Airbag
Always make certai n that children age 12 or younger alway s ride in the re ar seat. If childre n
are not properl y re stra in ed, they may be se­
ve rel y injured or killed when th e infl ates.
Never le t children ride unres trained or im ­properly re strain ed in th e ve hicl e.
Adjust the front seats properly.

According to US federal stand ards , an vanced Alrbag System can deploy with the
For their own safety, all children, especially 12 years and younger, must always ride on
When installing a child restraint, always
carefully follow the manufacturer's instruc­
tion s.
An infant in a reanvard-facing child restraint on the front passenger seat can be seve rely injured or killed if the airbags deploy.
Never use a reanvard-facing child seat or
The deploying airbagwill impact the ch ild
seat or infant carrier with great force and fling it,
along with child, against the seat backrest,
center armrest, door or roof.
Always properly reanvard-facingchild
sea ts or infant carriers, as well as fonvard-facing
child seats, on
ond
If special circumstances require the use of a
senger seat,
A forward-facing child restraint installed on
ploym ent and severely injure child.
Always make sure the fonvard-facing
child restraint has been designed and certified
for use on a front passenger seat with a front
airbag and a side airbag.
Never install a child safety seat without a
properly installed upper tether strap when the
manufacturer 's instructions require use of an upper
Never install a fonvard-facing chil d restraint
right up
Always set the upper anchorage point of the
safety belt to the highest position.
Always move passenger seat to
rearmost position in seat's fore and aft adjus tment range, as far
away from
stalling
Always make sure that no object prevents tJ1e
front passenger seat from being moved as far
back as possible.
Always make sure that the backrest is in its
mo st upright position.
Always make sure that the chil d sea t is curely installed, even when no child occupies it.
A poorly secured child seat can be thro wn
through the vehicle during sudden braking
88 89

Front airbags
Fig . 59 location ond deploy ment zone of the driver front oirbog.
Fig .
60 location and deployment zone of the passenger front oirbog .
read and no te the introductory
on page 80 .
The ve hicle is equippe d w ith
208 applicable at the tim e your vehicl e was manufactured. The a irbag for the driver is in the steerin g fig. 59 and the for the fron t passeng er is in the instrument panel 60 . The gene ra l locatio n of the air bags is
m arked
The activa tes the belt te n sione rs page 84.
Th e a r
eas marke d in re d (do tted page fig . 59 page fig . indi cate the airb ag plo ym ent zone. Never place or
naviga tion systems,
Before driving
heavy or bulky objects ) on the doors, on the s hi eld , o ve r or near the area marked in re d (dotted lin es) .
Front oirbogs not deploy:
if th e ig n itio n is switched off when cra sh
in sid e collision s,
in rear-end collis ions,
in roll overs.
when the cra sh d ecele rat io n measured by the airbag syste m is less than the minimum threshol d nee d ed f or airbag deployment as regis te red by the
e lectroni c control unit.
The passenger front oirbog
when the front passenger seat i s not occupied,
w hen the weight on the fron t passenger seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag in dica tes that t he front airbag on the passe nge r sid e should

Always make sure that the statu s signaled
b y the BAG light is correct
for the way that the front passenger seat is bein g
u sed.
The fine dust c reated when airbags deploy can cause breathing problems for people with asthma or other breathing conditions .
To reduce the risk of breathing probl ems , those wit h asthma or tion s should get fres h air right away by getting
o ut of th e ve hicl e or opening windows or doors.
If yo u are in a c ollision in which airbags de­
ploy, wash your hands and face with mild soap and wate r b efor e eating.
Be careful not to get the dust int o your eye s, or int o any cut s or sc ratch es.
If the residue should ge t into your eyes, them with water.
Airbags that have deployed in a cras h must
b e replac ed.
Use only original equipment airbag s appro­
ved by Volkswagen and installed by a train ed
technician who has the necessary tools and diagnosti c equipment to properl y re plac e any airbag on your veh icle and assure sys te m eff ec­
ti ve ness in a cra sh.
Neve r pe rmit salvage d or recy cled airb ags t o
be install ed in your vehicle .
Advanced Airbag System components
first re a d and note th e introductory information and heed the
on pag e
vehicles equipped with the Adva nced Airbag Syste m , th e front passe nge r seat contains a who le
array of important Advanced Airbag compo nents
page 82. Be­cause the front passe nger seat contains important Advanced Airbag System components. you must
take ca re to prevent it from bein g damaged . Damage to th e sea t may pre vent the Adva nced Airbag Syste m for the front passenger sea t from
doing its job in a cras h.
S ittin g properly ond solely
Alwa ys hold the s teering wheel with hands on outsid e of th e steerin g wheel rim at the 9 o 'clock and 3 o'clock positions to help re­
duce
Neve r hold the steeri ng wheel at the 12 o'clock position or with your hands anywhere
inside
s ioner s are cla ssified as Material -special handlin g ma y apply.
applicable legal requir ements when
scra pping the vehicle or o f it s restraint sys tem, including airbag modules and safe ty belts
wit h pretensioner s. Auth orized Volkswage n
dealers and authorized Volksw agen Serv ice ties are familiar with the require ments, an d we rec­
ommend that you have them p erform this serv ice for
The front Advanced Airbag System also includes:
sensors in the front of th e ve hicl e th at
m eas ure vehicle acce lera tion and dece leration to
p rovide informat io n to th e Advan ced Airb ag
System about the seve rity o f a crash.
An elec troni c co ntrol unit, with int egra ted
cras h sensors for front and sid e im pac ts. The con­
trol unit w heth er or n ot to fire just the front air bag s ba sed on the information received
from the crash sen so rs. Th e control unit also whether the safety belt pre te n si oners
s hould be activate d.
A n Adva nced Air b ag. with gas genera tor, ins id e the steering wheel hub for th e driver.
An Adva nced Airbag. with ga s gene rator, in sid e the ins trum ent pan e l for th e front passe nger.
A we ig ht-sen sing mat unde r the upho ls tery paddin g of th e front passenge r seat cushion that
m eas ures the to tal weight on the sear. The infor­
m atio n regi stered is sent co nti nuo usly to the elec-
92 93

tronic control unit to regu late deployment of the front Advanced Airbag on th e passe nger side.
A n airbag monitoring syste m and indicator
light in the in strument page 82.
The BAG light in the center of th e instru ment panel tells you when
th e front Advan ced Airbag Sys te m on th e been turned ofT.
A sensor in sid e the safe ty belt buckle for the fro nt passenger scat to measure th e te nsio n on the safe ty belt. Thi s te n sion on th e safe ty belt and th e
we ig ht regis te re d b y th e weigh t sens ing -mat help
t h e control unit w heth er th e passenger
front airbag should be turned ofT or not.
A switch in the safe ty bel t b uckle for the driver and for the front seat passen ge r senses
w hether th at safety belt is lat ched or n o t and
va nced Airbag System from working properly.
Repairs to th e front passenger seat should be performed by an authorized Volkswagen dealer or an authorized Volkswagen Service Facility.
Never remove the front passenger scat or driver seat from the vehicle .
Never re move the upholstery from the front passenger scat.
Neve r disassemble or take parts off the seat or disconnect wires from it.
Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or put them on the seat. If the weight-sensing mat in passenger scat is punctured it cannot work properly.
Befor e driving
Never carry things on your lap or carry jects on the front passenger scat.
sending the wrong information to the airbag control unit. T hese objects can also cause serious personal injury if th e ai rbag in nates.
Nevers tore items under the front scats. ponents of the Advanced Airbag Sys tem located under the front seats could be damaged, which coul d prevent them and the airbag system fro m
working properly.
Never put seat covers or replac em ent
cifically approved by Volk swage n.
Seat cove rs can prevent the Adva nced Airbag
System from recognizing child rest cupants on the passenger scat and ca n preve nt the side ai rbag in the seat backre st fro m
Never usc cushions, blankets, or simila r items on the front passenger seat. The additional padding will prevent the
tering a child restraint or person on the seat and will prevent the Advanced Airbag System frum
functioning prope rly.
If yo u must use a ch ild restraint on the front passenger seat and the child re straint
foam cushion or somethin g similar to properly the c hild restraint, m ake certain that the AIR BAG light or AIR BAG ligh t comes on and stays on whenever the child restra int is installed on the front passenger seat.
I f the AIR BAG light o r
immediately install the chi ld
r ized Volkswagen dealer or auth orized

door and the backre st. T he general locatio n is
s hown b y th e The area s marked in (dotted lin es)=> 62 in dicate the deploy­
m ent zones of the s ide airbags.
Durin g a s ide colli sio n , the sid e airbags in the backres t ca n deploy. there by redu cing th e risk of inju ry to ve hicle occupants.
The side airbag system includes :
ele ctroni c control m odule and side impact sensors .
Sid e ai rbags in the fro nt backrests and , where applicable, sid e airbags in the rear backrests .
An airb ag monito rin g sy ste m an d indicator light in the in strumen t clu ste r
W hen a side a irbag deploys in a coll is io n, a gas gene ra tor the side airbag b etween the vehicle occupant and the door. Th e side airbag syste m
supple m ents th e safety belt s and ca n help tore­duce the ris k of injury to the occupants' upper torso .
In ord er to help pro v
ide this additio nal protection, the sid e airbag must infl ate w ithin the bl ink of an eye at very hi gh sp ee d and w ith great force. The supplemental side a irbag co uld injure yo u if your seating position is not proper or upright or ifitems are in the area where the supplemental sid e airbag inflate s. Thi s applies especiall y to children
w ill co m e on for a few seconds
(self- d iagnos is).
The airbag syste m i s no t a s ubstitute for your safety be lt. Rather, it is part of the ov era ll occ upant restra int system in your ve hicle=> page 56,
re ad y dep lo ye d.
properly and safe ly
The side airbag sys tem
if the ignition i s sw itched ofT wh en a crash oc­curs,
in side c o lli sio ns wh en the a cce le rat ion mea­
s u re d b y the sensor is to o low,
in front-end collis ion s,
in re a r-end collis ion s,
in rollovers, unless the depl oy men t threshold for deploym ent stored in the control unit is met.
I n s
ome ty pes of accid ent s the front airbags , Sid e
C urtain airbag s and sid e airb ags may
b e triggered together.
A n Inflatin g side a irbag can cause serious or even fatal injury. Improp erly wearing safet y
b elt s and improp er seatin g po siti ons increase
th e risk of se riou s persona l injury and death
whenever vehicle is being used.
To help reduce the risk of injury when the
supplemental sid e a irb ag inflat es,
- Always sit in
an upright po sition and do
not l ea n agai nst th e area where the s ide
airbag is located.
- Neve r le t a c hild or anyo ne e lse rest their
head again st th e s ide trim panel in the area
where the s ide ai rbag inflates.
- Never let anyo ne s itting in the front
seat put their hand out o f window.
betw een yo u and the airba g ca n in­
crease the risk of injury in a colli sion by inter­
fering with the way the airbag unfolds or by
being pushed into you as th e airbag inflates.
Never pla ce or attach a ccess ories or other ob­
je cts (su ch a s cup holders, telephone bracke ts , or eve n large , bulky objects) on the doors or over or ncar th e area mark ed p age 96, fig. 6 1.
Accessories or other object s ca n fly dangerously
throu gh the passe nger compart ment and cau se se­rio u s injury if the supplemental sid e airbag
Neve r position or hol d any obje cts o r pet s in the
deplo yment space of an airbag or allow any child ­
r e n or other passenge rs to trave l in s uch a pos ition .
Never use th e built -in coat hook s for any thin g but lightweig ht clothing . Neve r leave
any heavy or sharp- edged objects in the pockets. objects may interfere w ith side airbag de­
pl oy ment and cau se seriou s personal injury in a
co llisio n.
96 97

The Side Curtain airbag system in­
An elec tron ic control module and side impact se nsors.
T he above th e
f ro nt
An monitoring sys te m 82.
Th e
airbags betwee n th e
fig . 63 . The airbag system supplem ents th e sa fety bel ts can help to reduce th e risk o f injury for occupants' heads and uppe r to rsos on the sid e of the that is s truck in s id e
order to he lp provid e thi s additional p ro tectio n,
t h e
w it h in the bl in k of an eye high speed and wi th grea t force. The airbag could injure you if your positio n is
n ot prope r o r upright or if ite ms arc locate d in the area w he re the supp le m ental airbag to page
sys te m is monitored e lectro nically to
make sure it is workin g properly at times. Eac h time you tu rn on the ignit io n , the airbag sys te m dicato r come on for few seconds
( s clf-d iag nosis).
Th e
airbag sys te m i s not it is part of th e ove rall occupant res tra int sys te m in your page 56,
is important to remember the airbag sys te m is desig ned to help re­duce the like lihood of ser iou s inju ry. H oweve r, it is possib le that a deployed m ay cause oth e r in juries s u ch as bruising, burns and abras io ns. Hc m ember too ,
airbags that have deploye d in sa fe ty be lts areal­
way s th ere to offer protection in those accidents in
w hich
The Side Curtain airbag
if the ign ition is switched w hen oc­curs,
in sid e collisions w he n the accele ra tion m ea ­
sure d by th e sensor is too low,
in front-end
in rear-end
in over s , unless the deployment thresh o ld
f o r deploym ent sto red in the control unit is met.
some ty pes of accidents th e front, and sid e airbags m ay be triggered to­geth er.
inflating airbagcan cause serio us or even f ata l injury . wearing safety belts and improper seating posi­tions increase the risk o f serious personal injury and death whenever a is being used.
A lway s make sure tection® can inflate without interference.
or sharp­
edge d objects in the pockets that interfe re
with deployment and c a use personal injury in a
Never u se hangers to on the
hooks.
use facto ry-ins talled sun shades or, if are the leaves the usc only genuine Volkswagen sun shades.
Neve r swing the sun viso rs ove r to the s ide
windows if it ems such pens, door o pe ne rs, hands -free speakers, etc. arc attached to t he su n visors. They could come lo ose and cause serious injury if the
deployed airbag second and at extreme ly high speed.
Neve r objects to the cover or in the de­ployment zone of a Curtain
The
between a ny
v ehicle occupant and a t
98 99

Child restraints and Advanced front airbag system
Please firs t read informatio n and heed the WARNINGS o n page
vehi cle is equipped w ith front complies with United States Federal Motor Vehicle and with Vehicle Safety dard
The Advanced Airbag requirements
for 3 and 6 yea r-old children (a s defined in the
standard) o n the passenger sid e and adults
o n th e side." Low risk" de ployment occurs
in those cras hes place at lower decelera­tions programmed in the e lectronic control unit. The low risk deployment c riteria are in­
t e nded to reduce the risk through int erac­tio n with the airbag can occur in these colli­
sio ns. for example, b y being too close to the steerin g wheel or in strument pan el when the airbag In addition, the system has been certifi ed to comply with the re­quirements of the Safe ty rd. to turn off the
f ront airbag fo r infant s up to 12 months w ho are restrained on th e front passenger seat in one of the c hild restraint s that a re lis ted in the
Airbag children, especially
those 12 years and younger. mus t a lways ride in the backseat properly re strained for their age and size. The airbag o n the passe nge r sid e makes the front scat potentiall y dangerous place for a child to
ride. The front seat is not the safest place for a child in a forward-facing child seat. la rger child in a rear­ward -fac ing seat.
The ,\dvanced Airb ag Syste m in your vehicle de­tects the presence o f a n in fant or child in a child straint on the front passenger seat using th e weight-sen sin g mat in th e scat cushion and the
se nsor in the sa fe ty be lt buckle on the fro nt pas­senger that measures the tension on the safet y
belt.
The weight-sen sin g measures total weight of the c hild and the child seat and
i.e. the size
pro perly ond safely
and shape of the botto m of the chi ld restraint as it
s it s on the seat. The weight of a chi ld restraint and its vary for different k inds of c hild re­
straints and for the diff erent mode ls o f th e same ki nd of child restra int offered by child restraint manufacturers.
The weight ranges for the in div idual types, makes a nd models of child res traint s
the Adva nced Airbag
Syste m compares th e weight measured by the weight-sen sing w ith the information sto re d in the electro ni c cont rol unit.
se nsor in the belt buckle fo r th e front seat
pnssenger measures th e te nsion on th e belt and sends thi s information to the electro ni c control
m odule for the sys tem. The tensio n on the safety belt for the front passenger seat w ill be dif­
ferent for an i s properly using the safety
belt, as
w hether th ere is a child res tra int with
restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regnrdlessofthcchild rest raint that yo u u se, make
s u re th at it bee n certifi ed to meet United States Federa l Mo tor Vehicle Standard Motor Vehicl e if you live in sure that the child re ­
straint yo u arc usin g been cerlifi ed b y its m an­ufacturer for use w ith airb ag. Always be s ure that th e ch ild restra int is properly installed at one of t h e rear seatin g position s.
of th e information on child
safety and Adva nced
that
th e passenger front is turne d off. that the is light.
Many types have been availn ble over th e years, new models are in-troduced r egularly in corporating new and im-

To reduce th e risk of serious injury, make sure
t hat the PASSENGER BAG ligh t comes on and stays on w hen ever a is stalled o n th e front passenger seat and th e tion is swit ched on.
Take the child off the front sen ge r seat and install it properly
does not stay on.
Have the airbag system inspected by your auU1orized Volkswagen dealer or author ized Volkswagen service facility
hicle while sitting on the lap of another passenger .
first read and note th e intr oductory information and hee d th e on page
rid e in the back seat properly s tr ain ed for their age and size.
A lwa ys u
se the right child seat for ea c h chi ld and always use it properly.
Always carefully follow the child seat ture r's instru ction s on how to ro ut e th e safety belt
properly through the child seal a nd how to restrain
th e child in the chiJd seat.
When using th e veh icle safety
to a child seat , you mus t firs t activate the switch able locking
featur e on the safety belt to help p revelll the c hild seal from movin g.
Sitting
really tight so tha t
additional information about
a child restraint syste m on the front passenger seat:
If you must in stall a child restraim on th e passe nger seat in excep tional circum stan ces, be
sure to read and heed th e importan t info rmation and warnings in the section of thi s Manual
There are additional adjustments that must
be made in order to be
the safety upper a nchorag e for the fron t passenge r seal so that the availabl e safely belt is
l o ng enough to pro p erly in stall the child restraint.