child restraint Ram Cargo Van 2014 Owner's Manual

DOOR LOCKS .........................34
â–« Manual Door Locks .....................34
â–« Power Door Locks — If Equipped ..........36
 WINDOWS ...........................38
â–« Power Vent Windows — If Equipped ........38
â–« Power Windows .......................38
 SLIDING SIDE DOOR ....................43
â–« Power Sliding Side Door — If Equipped ......44
â–« Sliding Side Door Child Protection Lock ......48
 LIFTGATE ............................51
â–« Power Liftgate — If Equipped .............52
 OCCUPANT RESTRAINTS ................55
â–« Lap/Shoulder Belts ....................58 â–«
Seat Belts In Passenger Seating Positions ......64
â–« Automatic Locking Retractor Mode (ALR) — If
Equipped ............................64
â–« Energy Management Feature ..............65
â–« Seat Belt Pretensioners ..................66
â–« Supplemental Active Head Restraints (AHR) . . .66
â–« Enhanced Seat Belt Use Reminder System
(BeltAlert®) ..........................70
â–« Seat Belts And Pregnant Women ...........71
â–« Seat Belt Extender .....................72
â–« Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) — Air Bags ......................72
â–« Air Bag System Components ..............74
â–« Advanced Front Air Bag Features ...........75
10 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

â–«Air Bag Deployment Sensors And Controls ....78
â–« Event Data Recorder (EDR) ...............85
â–« Child Restraints .......................86
 COMMERCIAL CARGO VEHICLES (NO FACTORY
INSTALLED REAR SEATS) — IF EQUIPPED ....97
â–« Restraining Infants And Small Children In
Commercial Cargo Vehicles ...............99
 ENGINE BREAK-IN RECOMMENDATIONS . . .100 
SAFETY TIPS ........................ .101
â–« Transporting Passengers .................101
â–« Exhaust Gas ........................ .101
â–« Safety Checks You Should Make Inside The
Vehicle ............................ .102
â–« Periodic Safety Checks You Should Make Outside
The Vehicle ........................ .104
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 11

Gas props support the liftgate in the open position.
However, because the gas pressure drops with tempera-
ture, it may be necessary to assist the props when
opening the liftgate in cold weather.
OCCUPANT RESTRAINTS
Some of the most important safety features in your
vehicle are the restraint systems:
•Three-point lap and shoulder belts for all seating
positions
• Advanced Front Air Bags for driver and front passen-
ger
• Supplemental Active Head Restraints (AHR) located
on top of the front seats (integrated into the head
restraint)
• Supplemental Driver Side Knee Air Bag
• Supplemental Seat-Mounted Side Air Bags (SAB) •
An energy-absorbing steering column and steering
wheel
• Knee bolsters/blockers for front seat occupants
• Front seat belts incorporate pretensioners that may
enhance occupant protection by managing occupant
energy during an impact event
• The front passenger seat includes an Automatic Lock-
ing Retractor (ALR) which locks the seat belt webbing
into position by extending the belt all the way out and
then adjusting the belt to the desired length to restrain
a child seat or secure a large item in a seat
Please pay close attention to the information in this
section. It tells you how to use your restraint system
properly, to keep you and your passengers as safe as
possible.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 55

NOTE:The Advanced Front Air Bags have a multistage
inflator design. This allows the air bag to have different
rates of inflation based on several factors, including the
severity and type of collision.
Here are some simple steps you can take to minimize the
risk of harm from a deploying air bag:
1. Children 12 years old and under should always ride
buckled up in a rear seat.
WARNING!
•Never place a rear facing infant seat in front of an
air bag. A deploying Passenger Advanced Front Air
Bag can cause death or serious injury to a child 12
years or younger, including a child in a rearward
facing infant seat.
• Only use a rearward-facing child restraint in a
vehicle with a rear seat. Children that are not big enough to wear the vehicle seat
belt properly (see section on Child Restraints) should be
secured in child restraints or belt-positioning booster
seats. Older children who do not use child restraints or
belt-positioning booster seats should ride properly buck-
led up in the passenger seat. Never allow children to
slide the shoulder belt behind them or under their arm.
If a child from 2 to 12 years old (not in a rear facing child
seat) must ride in the front passenger seat, move the seat
as far back as possible and use the proper child restraint.
(Refer to “Child Restraints”).
You should read the instructions provided with your
child restraint to make sure that you are using it properly.
2.
All occupants should always wear their lap and
shoulder belts properly.
3. The driver and front passenger seats should be
moved back as far as practical to allow the Advanced
Front Air Bags room to inflate.
56 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

you will prefer a higher position. When you release the
anchorage, try to move it up or down to make sure that
it is locked in position.
Seat Belts In Passenger Seating Positions
The seat belt in the front passenger seat is equipped with
an Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) which is used to
secure a child restraint system. For additional informa-
tion refer to “Installing Child Restraints Using the Vehicle
Seat Belt” under the “Child Restraint” section. The chart
below defines the type of feature for each seating posi-
tion.
Driver Center Passenger
First Row N/A N/A ALR
• N/A — Not Applicable
• ALR — Automatic Locking Retractor If the passenger seating position is equipped with an
ALR and is being used for normal usage:
Only pull the belt webbing out far enough to comfortably
wrap around the occupant’s mid-section so as to not
activate the ALR. If the ALR is activated, you will hear a
ratcheting sound as the belt retracts. Allow the webbing
to retract completely in this case and then carefully pull
out only the amount of webbing necessary to comfort-
ably wrap around the occupant’s mid-section. Slide the
latch plate into the buckle until you hear a
click.
Automatic Locking Retractor Mode (ALR) — If
Equipped
In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-
locked. The belt will still retract to remove any slack in
the shoulder belt. The Automatic Locking Mode is avail-
able on all passenger-seating positions with a combina-
tion lap/shoulder belt. Use the Automatic Locking Mode
anytime a child safety seat is installed in a seating
64 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

Seat Belt Pretensioners
The seat belts for both front seating positions are
equipped with pretensioning devices that are designed to
remove slack from the seat belt in the event of a collision.
These devices may improve the performance of the seat
belt by assuring that the belt is tight about the occupant
early in a collision. Pretensioners work for all size occu-
pants, including those in child restraints.
NOTE:These devices are not a substitute for proper seat
belt placement by the occupant. The seat belt still must be
worn snugly and positioned properly.
The pretensioners are triggered by the Occupant Re-
straint Controller (ORC). Like the air bags, the preten-
sioners are single use items. A deployed pretensioner or
a deployed air bag must be replaced immediately.
Supplemental Active Head Restraints (AHR)
These head restraints are passive, deployable compo-
nents, and vehicles with this equipment cannot be readily
identified by any markings, only through visual inspec-
tion of the head restraint. The head restraint will be split
in two halves, with the front half being soft foam and
trim, the back half being decorative plastic.
How The Active Head Restraints (AHR) Work
The Occupant Restraint Controller (ORC) determines
whether the severity, or type of rear impact will require
the Active Head Restraints (AHR) to deploy. If a rear
impact requires deployment, both the driver and front
passenger seat AHRs will be deployed.
66 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
Do not use accessory seat covers or place objects
between you and the side air bags; the performance
could be adversely affected and/or objects could be
pushed into you, causing serious injury.
SAB air bags are a supplement to the seat belt restraint
system. Occupants, including children who are up
against or very close to SAB air bags can be seriously
injured or killed. Occupants, especially children, should
not lean on or sleep against the door, side windows, or
area where the SAB air bags inflate, even if they are in an
infant or child restraint.
Always sit upright as possible with your back against the
seat back, use the seat belts properly, and use the
appropriate sized child restraint, infant restraint or
booster seat recommended for the size and weight of the
child.
Supplemental Driver Side Knee Air Bag
The Supplemental Driver Side Knee Air Bag provides
enhanced protection and works together with the Driver
Advanced Front Air Bag during a frontal impact.
Knee Impact Bolsters
The Knee Impact Bolsters help protect the knees of the
driver and front passenger, and position the front occu-
pants for the best interaction with the Advanced Front
Air Bags.
Along with seat belts and pretensioners, Advanced Front
Air Bags and the Supplemental Driver Side Knee Air Bag
work with the knee impact bolsters to provide improved
protection for the driver and front passenger.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 77

To read data recorded by an EDR, special equipment is
required, and access to the vehicle or the EDR is needed.
In addition to the vehicle manufacturer, other parties,
such as law enforcement, that have the special equip-
ment, can read the information if they have access to the
vehicle or the EDR.
Child Restraints
Everyone in your vehicle needs to be buckled up at all
times, including babies and children. Every state in the
United States, and every Canadian province, requires
that small children ride in proper restraint systems. This
is the law, and you can be prosecuted for ignoring it.Children 12 years or younger should ride properly
buckled up in a rear seat, if available. According to crash
statistics, children are safer when properly restrained in
the rear seats rather than in the front.
WARNING!
In a collision, an unrestrained child can become a
projectile inside the vehicle. The force required to
hold even an infant on your lap could become so
great that you could not hold the child, no matter
how strong you are. The child and others could be
badly injured. Any child riding in your vehicle
should be in a proper restraint for the child’s size.
86 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

There are different sizes and types of restraints for
children from newborn size to the child almost large
enough for an adult safety belt. Always check the child
seat Owner ’s Manual to make sure you have the correct
seat for your child. Carefully read and follow all the
instructions and warnings in the child restraint Owner ’s
Manual and on all the labels attached to the car seat.
Before buying any restraint system, make sure that it has
a label certifying that it meets all applicable Safety
Standards. You should also make sure that you can install
it in the vehicle where you will use it.NOTE:
•
For additional information, refer to
www.seatcheck.org or call 1–866–SEATCHECK. Cana-
dian residents should refer to Transport Canada’s
website for additional information:
• http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/safedrivers-
childsafety-index-53.htm
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 87

Summary Of Recommendations For Restraining Children In Vehicles
Child Size, Height, Weight or Age Recommended Type of Child Restraint
Infants and Tod- dlers Children who are two years old or
younger and who have not reached the
height or weight limits of their child re- straint Either an Infant Carrier or a Convertible
Child Restraint, facing rearward in the rear seat of the vehicle
Small Children Children who are at least two years old or who have out-grown the height or weightlimit of their rear-facing child restraint Forward-Facing Child Restraint with a
five-point Harness, facing forward in the rear seat of the vehicle
Larger Children Children who have out-grown their forward-facing child restraint, but are too
small to properly fit the vehicle’s seat belt Belt Positioning Booster Seat and the ve-
hicle seat belt, seated in the rear seat of the vehicle
Children Too Large
for Child Restraints Children 12 years old or younger, who
have out-grown the height or weight limit of their booster seat Vehicle Seat Belt, seated in the rear seat of
the vehicle
88 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE