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-
the electronic control module and external side
impact sensors
-
the two side airbags located in the sides
of
the
front backrests
-
the airbag warning light in the inst rument clus-
ter.
The airbag system is monitored elect ron ically to
make certa in th at it is func tioning properly at all
times. Each
t
ime you t urn on the ign ition, the
air-
bag system ind icator light will come on for a few
seconds (self diagnostics)
.
The side airbag system supp lements the safety
belts and can help
t
o reduce the ris
k of
injury to
the dr iver's and front passenger's upper torso on
the side of the vehicle that is struck in a side
col-
lision. The airbag dep loys only in side impacts
and only when the veh icle acceleration registered
by the control unit is high enoug h. If th is rate is
below the refe rence value programmed into the
control un it, the side airbags will not be t rig-
gered, even though the car may be bad ly dam-
aged as a result of t he collision. It is not poss ible
to define an airbag trigge ring range that will cov-
er
every possib le ang le
of
impact
,
since the cir-
cumstances
will
vary considerably between one
collision and another
.
Important factors include,
for example, the nature (hard or soft) of the
im-
pacting object, the ang le of impact, vehicle
speed, etc.
¢
page 150, Important safety in-
structions on the side airbag system
.
Aside from the ir norma
l
safety function, safety
belts work to help keep the dr iver or front pas-
senger in posit ion in the event of a side collision
so that the s ide airbags can provide protect ion.
The airbag system is
not
a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu-
pant restraint system in your vehicle. Always re-
membe
r
t hat the s ide airbag system can only
help to protect you if
you
are wear ing your safety
belt and wea ring it properly
.
This is ano
t
her rea-
son why you s hou ld always wea
r your
safety
belts,
not ju
st because the law req uires you to do
so
¢
page 124, General information.
It is important to remember that while the sup-
plemental s ide airbag system is designed
t
o re-
duce
t
he likelihood of serious
injuries,
other inju-
Airbag
sys
t
e
m
ries, for example, swell ing, bruising, and minor
abrasions can also be associated with dep loyed
side airbags. Remember too, s ide airbags
will de-
ploy only once and only in certain kinds of acci-
dents - your safety belts are always there to offer
protection
.
Vehicle damage, repair costs
or
even the lack of
vehicle damage are not necessari ly an indication
of over-sensitive or failed airbag activation
.
In
some collisions
,
both front and side airbags may
inflat
e. Remembe
r
too, that airbags will dep loy
only
once
and only in certa in kinds of collisions
-
your
safety belts are always the re to offer protec-
t
ion
in
t
hose accidents in wh ich 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 tu rned off
-
in side collisions whe
n
the acceleration meas
-
ured by the senso
r
is too low
-
in front -end collisions
-
in rear-end collisions
-
in rollove rs.
In some
t
ypes of accidents the front airbags and
side airbags may be tr iggered together.
A
WARNING
~
-
Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position
¢
page 150
.
-
If the airbag ind icator light
¢
page 19
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer. It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup
-
posed
t
o, or will not infla
t
e when
it
should.
149
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