airbag Acura MDX 2004 Owner's Manual

Î
Î
To use the horn, press the pad around the ‘‘A’’ logo.
:
Your Vehicle at a Glance
3
HEADLIGHTS/
TURN SIGNALS
FOG LIGHTS REMOTE AUDIO
CONTROLS STEERING WHEEL
ADJUSTMENT CRUISE CONTROL
HORN
WINDSHIELD WIPERS/WASHERS
VEHICLE STABILITY
ASSIST SYSTEM
OFF SWITCH
CRUISE CONTROL INSTRUMENT PANEL BRIGHTNESS
REAR WINDOW
DEFOGGER
VTM-4 LOCK
(P.72)
(P.184)
(P.144)
(P.75) (P.128) (P.76) (P.144)
(P.69) (P.
74)
(P.
75)
(P.
30)
(P.176)
(P.74) PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF
INDICATOR
HAZARD WARNING
BUTTON

µ
This section gives you important
inf ormation about how to protect
yourself and your passengers. It
shows you how to use seat belts
properly. It explains how your airbag
work, and it tells you how to properly
restrain inf ants and children in your
vehicle.
.........
Important Safety Precautions . 6
.......
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features . 7
.......................................
Seat Belts .8
...........................................
Airbags .9
.........
Protecting Adults and Teens . 11
.....
1. Close and Lock the Doors . 11
...........
2. Adjust the Front Seats . 11
............
3. Adjust the Seat-Backs . 12
...
4. Adjust the Head Restraints . 13
5. Fasten and Position the Seat .....................................
Belts .14
....
6. Adjust the Steering Wheel . 16
7. Maintain a Proper Sitting ................................
Position .16
.....
Advice f or Pregnant Women . 17
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 17Additional Inf ormation About Your
.................................
Seat Belts .19
..
Seat Belt System Components . 19
......................
Lap/Shoulder Belt .19
........ 20
...............
Seat Belt Maintenance . 21
Additional Inf ormation About Your .....................................
Airbags .22
......
Airbag System Components . 22
......... 23
........................
Advanced Airbag .25
...
How Your Side Airbags Work . 27
How Your Side Curtain Airbag .........................................
Work .28
How the SRS Indicator Light .......................................
Works .28
How The Side Airbag Of f ......................
Indicator Works .29
How the Passenger Airbag ...............
Of f indicator Works . 30
.............................
Airbag Service .31
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 32
Protecting Children General ................................
Guidelines .33
All Children Must Be ...............................
Restrained .33 All Children Should Sit in a Back
...........................................
Seat .34
The Passenger’s Front Airbag Can Pose Serious Risks to ...............................
Children .34
If You Must Drive with Several ...................................
Children .36
If a Child Requires Close ..................................
Attention .36
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 36
Protecting inf ants and .........................
Small Children .38
.......................
Protecting Inf ants .38
.........
Protecting Small Children . 39
.....................
Selecting a Child Seat .40
....................
Installing a Child Seat .41
Installing a Child Seat with .....................................
LATCH .42
Installing a Child Seat with ...............
a Lap/Shoulder Belt . 44
Installing a Child Seat with ...................................
a Tether .45
...........
Protecting Larger Children . 47
.............
Carbon Monoxide Hazard . 51
...................................
Saf ety Labels .52
Automatic Seat Belt Tensioners
How Your Front Airbags Work
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Driver and Passenger Saf ety5

You’ll f ind many saf ety
recommendations throughout this
section, and throughout this manual.
Therecommendationsonthispage
are the ones we consider to be the
most important.Excessive speed is a major f actor in
crash injuries and deaths. Generally,
the higher the speed, the greater the
risk, but serious injuries can also
occur at lower speeds. Never drive
f aster than is saf e f or current
conditions, regardless of the
maximum speed posted.
Having a tire blowout or a
mechanical f ailure can be extremely
hazardous. To reduce the possibility
of such problems, check your tire
pressures and condition f requently,
and perform all regularly scheduled
maintenance (see page ).
A seat belt is your best protection in
all types of collisions. Airbags
supplement seat belts, but airbags
are designed to inf late only in a
moderate to severe frontal impact,
side impact, or rollover collision. So
even though your vehicle is equipped
with airbags, make sure you and
your passengers always wear your
seat belts, and wear them properly
(see page ).
Children age 12 and under should
ride properly restrained in a back
seat. Infants and small children
should be restrained in a child seat.
Larger children should use a booster and a lap/shoulder belt until they
canusethebeltproperlywithouta
booster (see page ).
Alcohol and driving don’t mix. Even
one drink can reduce your ability to
respond to changing conditions, and
your reaction time gets worse with
every additional drink. So don’t drink
and drive, and don’t let your f riends
drink and drive, either. While airbags can save lives, they
can cause serious or fatal injuries to
occupants who sit too close to them,
or are not properly restrained.
Inf ants, young children, and short
adults are at the greatest risk. Be
sure to f ollow all instructions and
warnings in this manual.
14 49
197
Always Wear Your Seat Belt
Control Your Speed
K eep Your Vehicle in Saf e
Condition
Restrain All Children Don’t Drink and Drive Be Aware of Airbag Hazards
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Important Saf ety Precautions
6

Your vehicle is equipped with many
features that work together to
protect you and your passengers
during a crash.
Some saf ety f eatures do not require
anyactiononyourpart.These
include a strong steel f ramework
that forms a safety cage around the
passenger compartment; f ront and
rear crush zones, a collapsible
steering column, and seat belt
tensioners that tighten the front seat
belts in the event of a crash.
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Driver and Passenger Saf ety7
(7)(10)(9) (3) (1)
(2)
(6)
(10)
(7) (8)
(5)
(2) (11)
(4)
(6) Seat Belts
(7) Front Airbags
(8) Front Seat Belt Tensioners
(9) Door Locks
(10) Side Airbags
(11) Side Curtain Airbags (1) Safety Cage
(2) Crush Zones
(3) Seats and Seat-Backs
(4) Head Restraints
(5) Collapsible Steering Column

However, you and your passengers
can’t take f ull advantage of these
saf ety f eatures unless you remain
sitting in a proper position and
always wear your seat belts properly.
Infact,somesafetyfeaturescan
contribute to injuries if they are not
used properly.Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in all seating positions.
The f ollowing pages explain how you
cantakeanactiveroleinprotecting
yourself and your passengers. Your seat belt system also
includes an indicator on the
instrument panel to remind you and
your passengers to f asten your seat
belts.
Seat belts are the single most
effectivesafetydeviceforadultsand
larger children (Inf ants and smaller
children must be properly restrained
in child seats).
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces require you to
wear seat belts. When properly worn, seat belts:
Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle’s built-in saf ety f eatures.
Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including f rontal,
side, and rear impacts and
rollovers.
Help keep you f rom being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against other occupants.
Keep you f rom being thrown out
of the vehicle.
Help keep you in a good position
should the airbags ever deploy. A
good position reduces the risk of
injury f rom an inf lating airbag, and
allows you to get the best
advantage f rom the airbag.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Why Wear Seat Belt s
Seat Belts
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
8

Of course, seat belts cannot
completely protect you in every
crash.Butinmostcases,seatbelts
can reduce your risk of serious
injury.Always wear
your seat belt, and make sure you
wear it properly.
Your vehicle has a Supplemental
Restraint System (SRS) with f ront
airbags to help protect the heads and
chests of the driver and a front seat
passenger during a moderate to
severe f rontal collision (see pagef or more inf ormation on how
your f ront airbags work). Your vehicle also has side airbags to
help protect the upper torso of the
driver or a f ront seat passenger
during a moderate to severe side
impact (see page f or more
information on how your side airbags
work).
23 27
CONT INUED
What you should do:
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Airbags
9
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
Be sure you and your
passengers always wear seat
belts and wear them properly.

Your vehicle also has side curtain
airbags to help protect the heads of
the driver, f ront passenger, and
passengers in the outer rear seating
positions during a moderate to
severe side impact or rollover.
(See page f or more inf ormation
on how your side curtain airbags
work.)Always wear
your seat belt properly, and sit
upright, and as f ar back f rom the
steering wheel while allowing f ull
control of the vehicle. A f ront
passenger should move their seat as
f ar back f rom the dashboard as
possible.
The rest of this section gives more
detailed inf ormation about how you
can maximize your saf ety.
Remember, however, that no saf ety
system can prevent all injuries or
deaths that can occur in severe
crashes, even when seat belts are
properly worn and the airbags deploy.
The most important things you need
to know about your airbags are:
They are designed to supplement
the seat belts.
To do
their job, airbags must inf late with
tremendous f orce. So while
airbags help save lives they can
cause minor injuries, or more
serious or even fatal injuries if
occupants are not properly
restrained or sitting properly.
28
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
What you should do:
Airbags do not replace seat belts.
A irbags of f er no prot ect ion in rearimpact s, rollovers, or minorf ront al or side collisions.
A irbags can pose hazards.
10

If you sit too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard, you can be
seriously injured by an inf lating f ront
airbag, or by striking the steering
wheel or dashboard.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport
Canada recommend that drivers
allow at least 10 inches (25 cm)
between the center of the steering
wheel and the chest.Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it back and f orth to make sure
the seat is locked into position. See
page f or how to adjust the f ront
seats.
Adjust the driver’s seat-back to a
comf ortable, upright position,
leaving ample space between your
chest and the airbag cover in the
center of the steering wheel.
Passengers with adjustable seat-
backs should also adjust their seat-
back to a comf ortable, upright
position.
If you cannot get f ar enough away
f rom the steering wheel and still
reach the controls, we recommend
that you investigate whether some
type of adaptive equipment may help. 84
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Adjust the Seat-Backs
3.
12
Sitting too close to a front
airbag can result in serious
injury or death if the front
airbags inflate.
Always sit as far back from the
front airbags as possible.

Adjust the steering wheel, if needed,
so that the wheel points toward your
chest, not toward your f ace. This
provides optimal protection f rom the
f ront airbag.
See page f or how to adjust the
steering wheel.After all occupants have adjusted
their seats and put on seat belts, it is
very important that they continue to
sit upright, well back in their seats,
with their feet on the floor, until the
vehicle is parked and the engine is
off.
Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward or sideways,
or puts one or both f eet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is
greatly increased.
In addition, an occupant who is out of
position in the f ront seat can be
seriously or f atally injured in a crash
by striking interior parts of the
vehicle or being struck by an
inflating f ront airbag. Being struck
by an inf lating side airbag can result
in possibly serious injuries.
76
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Adjust the Steering Wheel Maintain a Proper Sitting
Position
6.
7.
16
Sitting improperly or out of
position can result in serious
injury or death.
Always sit upright, well back in
the seat, with your feet on the
floor.

If you are pregnant, the best way to
protect yourself and your unborn
child when driving or riding in a
vehicle is to always wear a seat belt,
and keep the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across the hips.When driving, remember to sit
upright and adjust the seat as f ar
back as possible while allowing f ull
control of the vehicle. When riding
as a f ront passenger, adjust the seat
as far back as possible.
This will reduce the risk of injuries
to both you and your unborn child
that can be caused by a crash or an
inflating front airbag.
Each time you have a check-up, ask
your doctor if it’s okay f or you to
drive.
All passengers
must sit in locked, upright seats
andbeproperlyrestrainedbyseat
belts.
A passenger who is not
wearing a seat belt during a crash
or emergency stop can be thrown
against the inside of the vehicle,
against other occupants, or out of
the vehicle.
If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a
crash.
CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Advice f or Pregnant Women Additional Saf ety Precautions
Never let passengers ride in t he
cargo area or on t op of a f olded-down back seat .
Passengers should not st and up orchange seats while the vehicle ismoving.
T wo people should never use t hesame seat belt .
17