Audi A8 2018 Owner's Manual page 260

Ch ild s a fety
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs or
18 kg) are best protected in chi ld safety seats de-
signed for their age and we ight . Experts say that
the skeleta l structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fu lly deve loped, and they
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in appro-
priate booster seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicable safety standards .
Booster seats raise the seat ing pos ition of the
child and repos ition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety be lt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places . The rout ing of
the belt over the child's body is very important
for the child's protection, whether or not a boos-
ter seat is used. Child ren age 12 and unde r must
a lways ride in t he rear seat.
Children who are at least 4 ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) tall ca n generally use the veh icle's
three po int lap and shoulder be lts. Never use the
lap be lt po rt ion of the vehicle 's safe ty belt alone
to restrain any child, rega rdless of how big the
chi ld is. Always remember that children do not
have the pronounced pe lvic struct ure req uired for
the proper function of lap belt portion of the ve-
hicle's three po int lap and shoulder belts. The
chi ld's safety absolutely requires that a lap belt
port ion of the safety belt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pelvis . Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child 's stomach o r abdomen.
In a crash, a irbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and w it h considerable fo rce . In order to do
its j ob, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be t here to prot ect the occ upant as the occu-
pa nt moves forward into the air bag.
A veh icle occupant who is out of position and too
close to the airbag gets in the way of an inflat ing
a irbag. Whe n a n occupan t is too close, he or she
will be st ruck violently and will receive ser ious or
possibly even fatal injury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important t hat all vehicle occupan t s, espec ia lly
a ny children, who mus t be in t he fro nt sea t be -
cause of exceptional circ ums t ances, be proper ly
258
restra ined and as far away from t he a irbag as
possib le . By keeping room between the chi ld's
body and the front of the passenger compa rt -
ment, the a irbag can inflate completely and pro-
vide supplementa l protection in certa in frontal
collisions.
A
WARNING
Not using a booste r seat, using the booster
seat imp roperly, incorrect ly install ing a boos-
ter sea t or using t he vehicle safety belt im -
properly increases the risk of se rious pe rsonal
injury and death in a collision or other emer -
gency situation. To he lp reduce the risk of se -
rious personal injury and/or death:
- The s hou lder belt m ust lie as close t o the
center of the chi ld'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 pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen .
Make sure that the belt lies flat and snug .
Pull o n the belt to tig hten if necessary.
- Failure to properly route safety belts over a
child's body w ill cause seve re injuries in a n
accident or othe r emergency situat ion
r=;,
page 219.
- The rear side of the ch ild safety seat should
be posit ioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the ve hicle sea t . Adju st t he rea r
seat head restr ai nt if it is diffi cult to ins t all
t he child seat w ith t he head restrain t in
place
r=;,
page 211 . Driving with head re -
st raints that are not prope rly adjusted in-
creases the risk of serious or fata l neck in-
jury dramat ica lly.
- Child ren on the front seat of any car, even
w it h Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in-
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates.
- Never let a ch ild put the shoulder be lt under
the arm or behind the back, because it could
cause severe injuries in a crash.
- Never let a child stand or kneel on any seat,
for examp le the front seat.
- Never let a chi ld ride in the cargo area of
your veh icle.
- Always remember that a ch ild leaning for -
ward, sitting sideways or out of position in
-