steering wheel HONDA ELEMENT 2003 1.G User Guide

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.
Devices intended to improve
occupant comf ort or reposition the
shoulder part of a seat belt can
severely compromise the
protective capability of the seat
belt and increase the chance of
serious injury in a crash. Carrying hard or sharp
objects on your lap, or driving with
a pipe or other sharp objects in
your mouth, can result in injuries
if your f ront airbag inf lates.
Any object
attached to or placed on the covers
marked ‘‘SRS AIRBAG’’ in the
center of the steering wheel and
on top of the dashboard could
interf ere with the proper operation
of the airbags. Or, if the airbags
inf late, the objects could be
propelled inside the vehicle and
hurt someone.
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
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 he
same seat belt .
Do not put any accessories on seatbelts. Do not place hard or sharp object s
bet ween yourself and a f rontairbag.
Do not at t ach or place object s onthe f ront airbag covers.
22

If your
hands or arms are close to the
airbag cover in the center of the
steering wheel or on top of the
dashboard, they could be injured if
the front airbag inflates. If a side airbag
inflates,acupholderorotherhard
object attached on or near the
door could be propelled inside the
vehicle and hurt someone.
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
K eep your hands and arms away
f rom t he airbag covers.
On models wit h side airbags, do
not at t ach hard object s on or neara f ront door.
23

Your Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) includes:An indicator light on the
instrument panel that alerts you to
a possible problem with the
system (see page ).
Emergency backup power in case
your vehicle’s electrical system is
disconnected in a crash.
Two f ront airbags. The driver’s
airbag is stored in the center of
the steering wheel; the f ront
passenger’sairbagisstoredinthe
dashboard. Both are marked ‘‘SRS
AIRBAG.’’
Automatic seat belt tensioners
(see page ).
Sensors that can detect a
moderate to severe frontal
collision.
A sophisticated electronic system
that continually monitors and
records inf ormation about the
sensors, the control unit, the
airbag activators, and driver and
passenger seat belt use when the
ignition is ON (II). If you ever have a moderate to
severe f rontal collision, the sensors
will detect the vehicle’s rapid
deceleration If the rate of
deceleration is high enough, the
control unit will instantly inf late the
front airbags and activate the
automatic seat belt tensioners. Your vehicle is equipped with dual-
stage, dual-threshold airbags to help
reduce the chance of airbag-caused
injuries.
52 57
SRS Components
How Your Front A irbags Work
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety54

This section gives inf ormation about
the controls and displays that
contribute to the daily operation of
your Honda. All the essential
controls are within easy reach............................
Control Locations .64
...............................
Indicator Lights .65
.............................................
Gauges .72
...............................
Speedometer .72 .................................
Tachometer .72
..............
Odometer/Trip Meter . 73
..................................
Fuel Gauge .73
...................
Temperature Gauge . 74
Controls Near the Steering .......................................
Wheel .75
...................................
Headlights .76
............
Daytime Running Lights . 77
....
Instrument Panel Brightness . 77
................................
Turn Signals .77
.....................
Windshield Wipers .78
..................
Windshield Washers . 79
Rear Window Wiper and .....................................
Washer .80
..........................
Hazard Warning .81
.............
Rear Window Def ogger . 81
......
Steering Wheel Adjustment . 82
...............................
Keys and Locks .83
..............................................
Keys .83
....................
Immobilizer System . 84
............................
Ignition Switch .85
......................
Power Door Locks .87
..................................
Rear Doors .88
............................................
Hatch .89
........................................
Tailgate .90
....................................
Glove Box .91 .................................................
Seats .92
.............
Front Seat Adjustments . 92
Driver’s Seat Height ..............................
Adjustment .93
................
Driver’s Seat Armrest . 93
..........................
Head Restraints .94
........................
Rear Seat Access .95
.......
Rear Seat-back Adjustment . 96
..........
Reclining the Front Seats . 97
...............
Folding the Rear Seats . 99
........
Removing the Rear Seats . 101
............................
Power Windows .103
...............................
Rear Windows .105
...........................................
Mirrors .106
..
Adjusting the Power Mirrors . 106
..........................................
Skylight .107
.........................
Beverage Holders .110
...............................
Parking Brake .111
...............................
Ceiling Pocket .112
.......................................
Coin Tray .112
............
Accessory Power Sockets . 113
...............................
Interior Lights .114
..............................
Ceiling Light .114
...................................
Spotlights .114
......................
Cargo Area Light .115
................
Ignition Switch Light . 115
Instruments and Controls
Inst rument s and Cont rols63

Î
Î
Thetwoleversonthesteering
column contain controls f or driving
f eatures you use most of ten. The lef t
lever controls the turn signals,
headlights, and high beams. The
right lever controls the windshield
washers and wipers.To use the horn, press the center pad of the steering wheel.
The hazard warning lights switch is
on the dashboard beside the shif t
lever.
The control under the lef t air vent is
f or the cruise control.
The tilt adjustment lever on the
underside of the steering column
allows you to tilt the steering wheel.
:
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols75
WINDSHIELD WIPERS/
WASHERS
HEADLIGHTS/TURN SIGNALS
(P.76,
77)
(P.78,79) SHIFT LEVER (A/T)
HAZARD WARNING
LIGHTS
A/T model is shown. CRUISE CONTROL (P.179)
(P.81)
(P.153)
HORN
REAR WINDOW
DEFOGGER
(P.81)
TILT ADJUSTMENT
(P.82)

To f lash the high beams, pull the
turn signal lever back lightly, then
release it. The high beams will come
on and go of f . The high beams will
stay on f or as long as you hold the
lever back, no matter what position
the headlight switch is in.
The rotating switch on the lef t lever
controls the lights. Turning this
switch to the ‘‘ ’’ position turns
on the parking lights, taillights,
instrument panel lights, side-marker
lights, and rear license plate light.
Turning the switch to the ‘‘ ’’
position turns on the headlights. If you leave the lights on, you will
hear a reminder tone when you open
the driver’s door.
To change f rom low beams to high
beams, push the turn signal lever
f orward until you hear a click. The
blue high beam indicator will light
(see page ). To return to low
beams, pull the turn signal lever
back.
69
Headlights
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols76

Canadian models only
With the headlight switch off, the
high beam headlights come on with
reduced brightness when you turn
the ignition switch to ON (II) and
release the parking brake. They
remain on until you turn the ignition
of f , even if you set the parking brake.
The headlights revert to normal
operation when you turn them on
with the switch.Signal a turn or lane change with this
lever. Push down on the lever to
signal a lef t turn, and up to signal a
right turn. If you push it up or down
all the way, the turn signal continues
to blink even when you release the
lever. It shuts off automatically as
you complete the turn.
Push the knob in the speedometer
repeatedly to adjust the brightness
of the instrument panel lights. There
are six brightness levels. A segment
display shows the current brightness
level.
CONT INUED
Instrument Panel Brightness
Daytime Running L ights T urn Signals
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols77
TURN SIGNAL LEVER

To signal a lane change, push lightly
on the turn signal lever in the proper
direction and hold it. The lever will
return to the center position as soon
as you release it.This lever controls the windshield
wipers and washers. It has five
positions:MIST: mist
OFF: off
INT: intermittent
LO: low speed
HI: high speed
To select a position, push the lever
up or down. In intermittent, the wipers operate
every f ew seconds. In low speed and
high speed, the wipers run continu-
ously.
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Windshield Wipers
78

To operate the wipers in mist mode,
push the control lever up f rom the
OFF position. The wipers run at high
speed until you release the lever.
This gives you a quick way to clear
the windshield.To clean the windshield, pull back on
the wiper control lever. The washers
spray until you release the lever.The wipers run at low speed while
you’re pulling the lever, then
complete one more sweep of the
windshield af ter you release it.
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Windshield Washers
79

Therotatingswitchontheright
lever controls the rear window wiper
and washer.Therearwindowwasherusesthe
same f luid reservoir as the wind-
shield washer.
To activate the rear windshield wiper,
rotate the switch to ‘‘ON’’. The wiper
operates every seven seconds after
completing two sweeps. When you
turn the wiper switch to the ‘‘OFF’’
position or turn of f the ignition
switch, the wiper will return to its
parked position.
To use the wiper and washer, rotate
and hold the switch one position up
f rom ‘‘ON’’. The wiper opreates
while you are holding the switch,
then completes two more sweeps
after you release it. To use the
washer only, rotate and hold the
switch one position down f rom
‘‘OFF’’.
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Rear Window Wiper and Washer
Inst rument s and Cont rols80