ECU Acura MDX 2003 Owner's Manua

Push and pull the child seat
f orward and f rom side to side to
verif y that it is secure enough to
stay upright during normal driving
maneuvers. If the child seat is not
secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract f ully, then repeat these
steps.
Af ter conf irming that the belt is
locked, grab the shoulder part of
the belt near the buckle and pull
up to remove any slack from the
lap part of the belt. Remember, if
the lap part of the belt is not tight,
the child seat will not be secure. It
mayhelptoputweightonthe
child seat, or push on the back of
the seat, while pulling up on the
belt.
To activate the lockable retractor,
slowly pull the shoulder part of the
belt all the way out until it stops,
then let the belt f eed back into the
retractor (you might hear a
clicking noise as the belt retracts).
Af ter the belt has retracted, tug on
it. If the belt is locked, you will not
be able to pull it out. If you can pull
the belt out, it is not locked and
you will need to repeat these steps.
3.
4.
5.
6.
CONT INUED
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety37

If you decide that a child can saf ely
ride up f ront, be sure to:Caref ully read the owner’s manual
and make sure you understand all
seat belt instructions and all saf ety
inf ormation.
Move the vehicle seat to the rear-
most position.
Have the child sit up straight, back
against the seat, and feet on or
near the f loor.
Check that the child’s seat belt is
properly positioned and secured.
Remind the child not to lean
toward the door because of the
side airbag.
Supervise the child. Even mature
children sometimes need to be
reminded to f asten the seat belts
or sit properly.
Physically, a child must be large
enough f or the lap/shoulder belt to
properly f it over the hips, chest, and
shoulder (see pages and ). If
the seat belt does not f it properly,
the child should not sit in the f ront.
To saf ely ride in f ront, a child must
be able to f ollow the rules, including
sitting properly and wearing the seat
belt properly throughout a ride.
Of course, children vary widely. And
while age may be one indicator of
when a child can saf ely ride in the
f ront, there are other important
f actors you should consider.
15 39
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Physical Size
Maturity
41

Your vehicle has attachment points
for a tether-style child seat to be
installed on the second or third row
as shown.There are two anchorage points on
the tailgate sill. Select the anchorage
point you want to use, and remove
the cover with a small f lat-tipped
screwdriver or f ingernail f ile.
Each second row seat has a tether
anchorage point behind the seat
back.
Since a tether can provide additional
security, we recommend using a
tether whenever one is required or
available. (Tethers are required in
Canada.)
Second Seat Installation:
Third Seat Installation:Using Child Seats with T ethers
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety42
TETHER ANCHORAGE POINT

Put the child seat in a second row
vehicle seat and attach the child
seat to the lower anchors
according to the child seat maker’s
instructions.
Your vehicle is equipped with
LATCH (Lower Anchors and
Tethers f or Children) at the second
row seats. The lower anchors are
located between the seat-back and
seat bottom and are to be used only
with a child seat designed f or use
with LATCH. Move the seat belt buckle or seat
belt tongue away f rom the lower
anchors.
To install a LATCH-compatible child
seat:
Make sure there are no f oreign
objects around the anchors.
Foreign objects could get in the
way of a secure connection
between the child seat and the
anchors.
The exact location of each lower
anchorage is marked with a small
button above the lower anchorage
point.
1.
2.
3.
Using L A T CH
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety44
RIGID TYPE
MARKS
LOWER
ANCHORS

Follow the child seat maker’s
instructions f or any additional
advice on adjusting or tightening
the fit.Attach the attaching clip to the
tether anchor fitting and tighten
the strap according to the child
seat maker’s instructions. Make
sure the strap is not twisted.
Push and pull the child seat
f orward and f rom side to side to
verif y that it is secure enough to
stay upright during normal driving
maneuvers.This symbol on rear or f orward
f acing child seats or booster
cushions indicates the presence of
LATCH compatible hardware.
4.
5.
6.
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
L ower Universal Anchorage
System Symbol
45
FLEXIBLE TYPE

The seat belts in all seating positions
except the driver’s have an additional
locking mechanism that must be
activated to secure a child seat. (See
pages and f or instructions on
how to secure child seats with this
type of seat belt.)
If the shoulder part of the belt is
pulled all the way out, the locking
mechanism will activate. The belt
will retract, but it will not allow the
passenger to move f reely.
To deactivate the locking
mechanism, unlatch the buckle and
let the seat belt f ully retract. To
ref asten the belt, pull it out only as
f ar as needed.
See page f or instructions on how
to wear the lap/shoulder belt
properly.
To fasten the belt, insert the latch
plate into the buckle, then tug on the
belt to make sure the buckle is
latched.
To unlock the belt, push the red
PRESSbuttononthebuckle.
Guide the belt across your body so
that it retracts completely. After
exiting the vehicle, be sure the belt
is out of the way and will not get
closed in the door.
All seat belts have an emergency
locking retractor. In normal driving,
the retractor lets you move f reely in
your seat while it keeps some
tension on the belt. During a collision
or sudden stop, the retractor
automatically locks the belt to help
restrain your body.
153632
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety47

Your vehicle has front passenger’s
weightsensorsaspartof the
advanced airbag system. They are
located under both of the f ront
passenger’s seat rails. These sensors
monitor the weight on the seat at the
seat cushion, seat-back, seat-back
pocket, and seat rails.
If the total weight on the seat is
about65lbs(30kg)orless,the
system shuts of f the f ront passenger’s
airbag and the passenger airbag
cutof f indicator comes on. It reminds
you that the f ront passenger’s airbag
will not inf late during a crash.
If there is no passenger in the f ront
passenger’s seat, the passenger
airbag cutoff indicator does not
come on, however the system shuts
of f the f ront passenger’s airbag.The driver’s and f ront passenger’s
seat sensors may not work properly
if :
For additional information on how
your airbags work, see the booklet
titled
that came with your
owner’s manual.
For additional information on how
your airbags work, ask your dealer
f or a copy of the booklet titled
You do not wear your seat belt
properly.
You do not sit upright and as f ar
back as possible f rom the steering
wheel or the dashboard (see page
).
You do not secure the child seat
properly, and move the f ront seat
as far back as possible.
Be caref ul not to spill any liquids.
Spilled liquids could damage the
sensors under the f ront seats.
If your vehicle sustains a severe
impact, have the driver’s seat
position sensor and the f ront
passenger’s weight sensors
inspected by your Honda dealer. 18
SRS: What You Need to Know
About Airbags
SRS:
What You Need to Know About Airbags
.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Front Passenger’s Weight Sensors
Canadian Owners
U.S. Owners
54

To ensure the f ront passenger’s seat
weight sensors keep the passenger’s
airbag activated when an adult or
large child weighing about 65 lbs/
30 kg or more sits in the front
passenger’s seat, do not allow
anything to decrease the weight on
the seat. This includes, but is not
limited to, these examples:Rear passengers pushing up the
frontpassenger’sseatwiththeir
f eet.
Front passenger’s seat f orcibly
pushed up by luggage or other
items placed under it.
Front passenger’s seat f orcibly
moved backward into luggage or
other items placed behind it. If a passenger is tall enough to use
the seat belt and sit properly, but the
passenger airbag cutof f indicator
comes on and of f repeatedly, we
recommend that the passenger sits
in a rear seat. If the passenger must
sit on the f ront seat, move the seat
as far to the rear as possible, have
the passenger sit upright, and make
sure the seat belt is worn securely.
To ensure the f ront passenger’s seat
weight sensors keep the passenger’s
airbag deactivated when an infant or
small child weighing about 65 lbs/
30 kg or less sits in the f ront
passenger’s seat, do not allow
anything to increase the weight on
the seat. This includes, but is not
limited to, these examples:
Rear passengers pushing or
pulling the f ront passenger’s seat-
back or pushing the seat rails with
their f eet.
Heavy items placed in the f ront
passenger’s seat-back pocket.
CONT INUED
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety59

If the passenger airbag cutof f
indicator does not light, or comes on
and of f repeatedly while a child seat
is secured on the f ront passenger’s
seat, remove the child seat, then
secure it on a rear seat.
When you turn the ignition switch to
ON (II), the passenger airbag cutof f
indicator will light brief ly then go out.
This tells you that the system is
working properly.
The indicator may come on or of f a
f ew seconds later if the weight on
the f ront passenger’s seat changes.Your f ront and side airbag systems
are virtually maintenance-f ree, and
there are no parts you can saf ely
service. However, you must have
your vehicle serviced if :
Any
airbag that has deployed must be
replaced along with the control
unit, automatic seat belt
tensioners and other related parts.
Do not try to remove or replace
anyairbagbyyourself.Thismust
be done by an Acura dealer or a
knowledgeable body shop.
Take your vehicle to
an authorized Acura dealer as
soon as possible. If you ignore this
indication, the airbags might not
inf late when you need them.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Airbag Service
Your airbags ever inf late.
T he SRS indicat or light alert s yout o a problem.
60

Push the lever up to lock the
steering wheel in that position.
Make sure you have securely
locked the steering wheel in place
by trying to move it up and down.
To adjust the steering wheel upward
or downward: Push the lever under the steering
column all the way down.
Move the steering wheel to the
desired position, making sure the
wheel points toward your chest,
not toward your f ace. Make sure
you can see the instrument panel
gauges and the indicator lights.
Make any steering wheel adjustment
bef ore you start driving.
3.
4.
1.
2.
See page f or important saf ety inf ormation about how to properlyposition the steering wheel. 18
Steering Wheel A djustment
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols89
Adjusting the steering wheel
position while driving may
cause you to lose control of the
vehicle and be seriously injured
inacrash.
Adjust the steering wheel only
when the vehicle is stopped.