Audi Q5: Child restraints on the front seat - some important things to know
- Be sure to read the important information and head the WARNINGS for important details about children and Advanced Airbags.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that all children, especially those 12 years and younger, always ride in the back seat properly restrained for their age and size. The airbag on the passenger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to ride. The front seat is not the safest place for a child in a forward-facing child safety seat. It can be a very dangerous place for an infant or a child in a rearward-facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle has been certified to comply with the Requirements of United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time your vehicle was manufactured.
The Standard requires the front airbag on the passenger side to be turned off ("suppressed") if a child up to about one year of age restrained in one of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was certified has been installed on the front passenger seat. For a listing of the child restraints that were used to certify compliance with the US Safety Standard.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the instrument panel tells you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off by the electronic control unit.
Each time you turn on the ignition, the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come on for a few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small child or child restraint on the front passenger seat,
- will go off if the front passenger seat is occupied by an adult as registered by the weightsensing mat.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on when the control unit detects a total weight on the front passenger seat that requires the front airbag to be turned off.
If the total weight on the front passenger seat is more than that of a typical 1 year-old child but less than the weight of a small adult, the front airbag on the passenger side can deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on). If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on, the front airbag on the passenger side has not been turned off by the electronic control unit and can deploy if the control unit senses an impact that meets the conditions stored in its memory.
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
- a small child that is heavier than a typical 1 year-old child is on the front passenger seat (regardless of whether the child is in one of the child safety seats listed), or
- a child who has outgrown child restraints is on the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in the instrument cluster and stays on.
The front airbag on the passenger side may not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not illuminate and stay lit) even if a small adult or teenager, or a passenger who is not sitting upright with their back against a non-reclined backrest with their feet on the vehicle floor in front of the seat is on the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Federal Standard requires the airbag to meet the "low risk" deployment criteria to reduce the risk of injury through interaction with the airbag. "Low risk" deployment occurs in those crashes that take place at lower decelerations as defined in the electronic control unit.
Always remember, a child safety seat or infant carrier installed on the front seat may be struck and knocked out of position by the rapidly inflating passenger's airbag in a frontal collision. The airbag could greatly reduce the effectiveness of the child restraint and even seriously injure the child during inflation.
For this reason, and because the back seat is the safest place for children - when properly restrained according to their age and size - we strongly recommend that children always sit in the back seat.
WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat installed on the front passenger seat will be seriously injured and can be killed if the front airbag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety seat or infant carrier with great force and will smash the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child safety seat on the front passenger seat because of exceptional circumstances and the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on and stay on, immediately install the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi dealer.
- Forward-facing child safety seats installed on the front passenger's seat may interfere with the deployment of the airbag and cause serious personal injury to the child.
WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must install a forward-facing child restraint on the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint up against or very near the instrument panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft adjustment range, as far away from the airbag as possible before installing the forward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position.
- Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays on all the time whenever the ignition is switched on.
WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will be displayed whenever a child restraint is installed on the front passenger seat and the ignition is switched on.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not stay on, perform the checks described.
- Take the child restraint off the front passenger seat and install it property at one of the rear seat positions if the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi dealer immediately.
- Always carefully follow instructions from child restraint manufacturers when installing child restraints.
WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must install a forward or rearward-facing child restraint on the front passenger's seat:
- Improper installation of child restraints can reduce their effectiveness or even prevent them from providing any protection.
- An improperly installed child restraint can interfere with the airbag as it deploys and seriously injure or even kill the child - even with an Advanced Airbag System.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions provided with the child safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat that can increase the total weight registered by the weight-sensing mat and can cause injury in a crash.
