Table of Contents
Advertisement
CD
CD
....
N
,-...
N
.....
0
0
C<'.
00
- the e lectron ic control modu le and externa l side
impact sensors
- the two airbags located in the sides of the front
backrests and the two airbags * located in the
rear backrest
- the airbag warning light in the inst rument clus-
ter.
The a irbag system is monitored electronically to
make certa in that it is functioning properly at all
times . Each time you turn on the ignition, t he air-
bag system indicator light will come on for a few
seconds (self diagnostics).
The s ide airbag system supp lements the safe ty
be lts and can help to reduce the risk of injury to
the driver 's and front passenger's upper torso on
the side of the vehicle that is struck in a side col-
lision . The airbag deploys on ly in side impacts
and only when the veh icle accelera t ion reg istered
by the control unit is high enough . If this rate is
below the reference value programmed
into the
control unit, the side airbags will not be tr ig-
ge red, even t hough the car may be badly dam-
aged as a result of the collision . It is no t possib le
to define an airbag trigge ring range that w ill cov-
er every possible angle of impact, since the cir-
cumstances will vary considerably between one
collision and another. Important factors include,
for example, t he nature (hard or soft) of the im-
pacting objec t , the ang le of impact , vehicle
speed , etc .
q
page 164, Important safety in-
structions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
be lts work to help keep the driver or front pas-
senger in posit ion in the event of a side collision
so that the s ide a irbags can prov ide protection .
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 that the side airbag system can only
he lp to protect you if you are wea ring your safety
be lt and wea ring it properly. This is ano t her rea-
son why you shou ld always wear your safety
be lts, not just because the law requ ires you to do
so
q
page 140, General information.
It is important t o remember that wh ile the sup-
plement a l side a irbag sys t em is designed t o re-
Airb a g sys tem
duce the likelihood of serious injuries , other inju-
ries, for example, swelling, bruising, and minor
abras ions can also be associated wit h deployed
s ide airbags. Remember too, side airbags will de-
ploy only once and only in certain kinds of acci-
dents - your safety belts are always there to offer
protect io n.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack of
vehicle damage are not necessar ily an ind ication
of over -sens it ive or fa iled a irbag activation . In
some collisions, both front and side airbags may
inflate . Remember too, that a irbags w ill dep loy
only once and only in certa in kinds of collisions -
yo ur safe ty belts are always t here to offer protec-
t ion in those accidents in which airbags are not
supposed to deploy or when t hey have already
deployed.
The side airbag system will not deploy:
- when the ignit ion is t urned off
- in side collisions when the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
- in fro nt-end coll isions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers .
In some types of accidents t he front airbags, side
curtain airbags and side ai rbags may be triggered
together .
A
WARNING
-
- Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protect ion when occupants are in
the proper seat ing pos ition ¢
page 164 .
- If
the airbag ind icator light ¢
page 13
comes when the veh icle 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 w ill not inflate w hen it should.
163
Advertisement
Table of Contents
