Audi A8 2018 Owner's Manual page 249

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the circumstances will vary considerably between
one collision and another. Important factors in-
clude, for example, the nature (hard or soft) of
the impacting object, the angle of impact, vehicle
speed, etc.
c>
page 247, How side curtain air-
bags work .
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
belts work to help keep the driver or front pas-
senger in posit ion in the event of a collision so
that the side curta in airbags can provide protec-
tion .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu-
pant restraint system in your veh icle . Always re-
member t hat the airbag system can only help to
protect you if you are wea ring your safety belt
and wear ing it properly . This is anothe r reason
why you should always wear your safety be lts,
not ju st because the law requi res you to do so
¢
page 219, General information.
It is important to remember that while t he s ide
curta in airbag system is des igned to he lp reduce
the likelihood of ser ious injuries, other injuries,
for example, swe lling, bruising, and minor abra -
sions can also be associated with these airbags
upon dep loyment. Remember too, these airbags
will deploy only once and only in certa in kinds of
accidents - your safety belts are always there to
offer protect ion.
The side curtain airbag system basically
consists of:
- The electronic contro l module and external side
impact senso rs
- The side curtain airbags above the front and
rear s ide windows
- The airbag indicator light in the instrument
panel
The airbag system is monitored electronically to
make certain it is funct ioning properly at all
times. Each time you switch on the ign ition, the
airbag system indicator light will come on for a
few seconds (self diagnostics) .
The side curtain airbag is not activated:
- if the ignition is switched off,
Airbag
system
- in side collisions whe n the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low,
- in rear -end collisions .
A
WARNING
- Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position
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page 54,
Seats and storage.
- If the airbag ind icator light i=> page 23
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup-
posed to, or will not inflate when it should .
How side curtain airbags work
Side curtain airbags can work together with side
airbags to help reduce the risk of head and upper
torso injuries for occupants who are properly re-
strained.
Fig. 238 Illus tr at ion of principle: Inflated side curta in air-
bags on the left side
The side curtain airbags inflate between the oc-
cupant and the windows in a side collision
¢fig. 238.
When the system is triggered, the s ide curtain
airbag is filled with propellant gas and breaks
th rough a seam above the front and rear side
windows identified by the AIRBAG label. In order
to help provide this additional prot ect ion, t he
side curtain airbag must inflate within the blink
of an eye at very high speed and with great force.
The side curtain airbag could injure you if your
seat ing pos ition is not proper or upright or if
247