steering SUBARU FORESTER 2002 SG / 2.G Owners Manual

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deploys could suffer very serious injuries. Because the SRS air- bag needs enough space for deployment, the driver should al-ways sit upright and well back in the seat as far from the steeringwheel as practical while still maintaining full vehicle control and
the front passenger should move the seat as far back as possibleand sit upright and well back in the seat.
Carefully read the sections “Seat, seatbelts and SRS airbag ” in chapter 1
of this owner ’s manual for instructions and precautions concerning the
seatbelt system and SRS airbag system. CHILD SAFETY
WARNING
Never hold a child on your lap or in your arms while the ve-
hicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the child from in- jury in a collision, because the child will be caught between the
passenger and objects inside the vehicle. While riding in the vehicle, infants and small children should
always be placed in the REAR seat in an infant or child restraint
system which is appropriate for the child ’s age, height and
weight. If a child is too big for a child restraint system, the childshould sit in the REAR seat and be restrained using the seatbelts.According to accident statistics, children are safer when properlyrestrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seatingpositions. Never allow a child to stand up or kneel on the seat. Put children aged 12 and under in the REAR seat properly re-
strained at all times in a child restraint device or in a seatbelt. TheSRS airbag deploys with considerable speed and force and caninjure or even kill children, especially if they are 12 years of ageand under and are not restrained or improperly restrained. Be-
cause children are lighter and weaker than adults, their risk being
injured from deployment is greater. NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD SAFETY SEAT
IN THE FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR
DEATH TO THE CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO

1-2
Front seatsWARNING
Never adjust the seat while driving to avoid the possibility of
loss of vehicle control and of personal injury. Never drive the vehicle with the head restraints removed be-
cause they are designed to reduce the risk of serious neck injury
in the event that the vehicle is struck from the rear. Before adjusting the seat, make sure the hands and feet of rear
seat passengers are clear of the adjusting mechanism. Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when the occupant sits
well back and upright in the seat. To reduce the risk of sliding un-der the seatbelt in a collision, the front seatbacks should be al-ways used in the upright position while the vehicle is running. Ifthe front seatbacks are not used in the upright position in a colli-
sion, the risk of sliding under the lap belt and of the lap belt slid-ing up over the abdomen will increase, and both can result in se-rious internal injury or death. Do not put cushions or any other materials between occupants
and seatbacks or seat cushions. If you do so, the risk of sliding
under the lap belt and of the lap belt sliding up over the abdomen
will increase, and both can result in serious internal injury or death. The SRS airbags deploy with considerable speed and force.
Occupants who are out of proper position when the SRS airbag
deploys could suffer very serious injuries. Because the SRS air-bag needs enough space for deployment, the driver should al-ways sit upright and well back in the seat as far from the steeringwheel as practical while still maintaining full vehicle control and
the front passenger should move the seat as far back as possibleand sit upright and well back in the seat. Put children aged 12 and under in the rear seat properly re-
strained at all times. The SRS airbag deploys with considerable
speed and force and can injure or even kill children, especially if
they are 12 years of age and under and are not restrained or im-
properly restrained. Because children are lighter and weaker than

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags1-3
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adults, their risk of being injured from deployment is greater. For
that reason, we strongly recommend that ALL children (including
those in child seats and those that have outgrown child restraint
devices) sit in the REAR seat properly restrained at all times in a
child restraint device or in a seatbelt, whichever is appropriate for
the child’s age, height and weight.
Secure ALL types of child restraint devices (including forward fac-
ing child seat) in the REAR seats at all times.
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD SEAT IN THE
FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO
THE CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO CLOSE TO THE
SRS AIRBAG.
According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating
positions. For instructions and precautions concerning child re-
straint systems, see the “Child restraint systems ” section in this
chapter.
HB0290
HS0233
Adjust the seatback to upright position. Sit well back and upright.
Move the seat as far from the steering wheel as practical. Adjust the seatback toupright position. Sit well back and upright.Move the seat as far back as possible.

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Rear seatsWARNING
Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when the occupant sits
well back and upright in the seat. Do not put cushions or any other
materials between occupants and seatbacks or seat cushions. If
you do so, the risk of sliding under the lap belt and of the lap belt
sliding up over the abdomen will increase, and both can result in
serious internal injury or death. Never allow passengers to ride on the folded rear seatback, in
the cargo area. Doing so may result in serious injury or death. Never stack luggage or other cargo higher than the top of the
seatback because it could tumble forward and injure passengersin the event of a sudden stop or accident. Secure skis and other lengthy items properly to prevent them
from being thrown around inside the vehicle and causing serious
injury during a sudden stop, a sudden steering or a rapid accel-eration.
HB0302
Sit well back and upright.
Armrest (if equipped)
WARNING
To avoid the possibility of serious injury, passengers must never be allowed to sit on the center armrest while the vehicle is in mo-tion.

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Front seatbelts
OM-H0044OM-H0043
1. Adjust the seat position:
Driver’ s seat: Adjust the seatback to the upright position. Move the
seatback as far from the steering wheel as practical while still main-
taining full vehicle control.Front passenger ’s seat: Adjust the seatback to the upright position.
Move the seat as far back as possible.
2. Sit well back in the seat.
3. Pick up the tongue plate and pull the belt out slowly. Do not let it
get twisted. If the belt stops before reaching the buckle, return the
belt slightly and pull it out more slowly. If the belt still cannot be
unlocked, let the belt retract slightly after giving it a strong pull, thenpull it out slowly again.
4. Insert the tongue plate into the buckle until you hear a click.
5. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the shoulder belt. And placethe lap belt as low as possible on your hips, not on your waist. n Adjusting the front seat shoulder belt anchor height
WARNING
When wearing the seatbelts, make sure the shoulder portion of the webbing does not pass over your neck. If it does, adjust the
seatbelt anchor to a lower position. Placing the shoulder beltover the neck may result in neck injury during sudden braking orin a collision.

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Not wearing a seatbelt increases the chance of severe injury or death in a crash even when the car has the SRS airbag.
For instructions and precautions concerning the seatbelt system,see the “Seatbelts” sections in this chapter.
Do not sit or lean unnecessarily close to the SRS airbag. Be-
cause the SRS airbag deploys with considerable speed – faster
than the blink of an eye – and force to protect in high speed colli-
sions, the force of an airbag can injure an occupant whose bodyis too close to SRS airbag. It is also important to wear your seatbelt to help avoid injuriesthat can result when the SRS airbag contacts an occupant not inproper position such as one thrown forward during pre-accidentbraking.Even when properly positioned, there remains a possibility thatan occupant may suffer minor injury such as abrasions andbruises to the face or arms because of the SRS airbag deploy-ment force. The SRS airbags deploy with considerable speed and force.
Occupants who are out of proper position when the SRS airbag
deploys could suffer very serious injuries. Because the SRS air-bag needs enough space for deployment, the driver should al-ways sit upright and well back in the seat as far from the steeringwheel as practical while still maintaining full vehicle control and
the front passenger should move the seat as far back as possibleand sit upright and well back in the seat. Do not place any objects over or near the SRS airbag cover or
between you and the SRS airbag. If the SRS airbag deploys,those objects could interfere with its proper operation and could
be propelled inside the car and cause injury. Put children aged 12 and under in the rear seat properly re-
strained at all times. The SRS airbag deploys with considerablespeed and force and can injure or even kill children, especially ifthey are 12 years of age and under and are not restrained or im-properly restrained. Because children are lighter and weaker than
adults, their risk of being injured from deployment is greater.
For that reason, we strongly recommend that ALL children

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SRS frontal airbag
WARNING
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD SAFETY SEAT
IN THE FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR
DEATH TO THE CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO
CLOSE TO THE SRS AIRBAG. Never allow a child to stand up, or to kneel on the front pas-
senger’ s seat, or never hold a child on your lap or in your arms.
The SRS airbag deploys with considerable force and can injure oreven kill the child. The SRS airbag deploys with considerable speed and force.
Occupants who are out of proper position when the SRS airbag
deploys could suffer very serious injuries. Because the SRS air-bag needs enough space for deployment, the driver should al-ways sit upright and well back in the seat as far from the steeringwheel as practical while still maintaining full vehicle control and
the front passenger should move the seat as far back as possibleand sit upright and well back in the seat. It is also important to wear your seatbelt to help avoid injuriesthat can result when the SRS airbag contacts an occupant not inproper position such as one thrown toward the front of the carduring pre-accident braking.
HB0306 HB0307
Never install rearward facing child restraint system in the front passen-
ger’
s seat.
Never allow a child to stand up, or to kneel on the front passenger ’s
seat

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags1-49
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HB0308
Never hold a child on your lap or in your arms.HS0233
Adjust the seatback to upright position. Sit well back and upright.
Move the seat as far from the steering wheel as practical.
HB0290
Adjust the seatback to upright position. Sit well back and upright.
Move the seat as far back as possible.
WARNING
Do not put any objects over the steering wheel pad and dash-
board. If the SRS frontal airbag deploys, those objects could in-
terfere with its proper operation and could be propelled inside the
vehicle and cause injury. Do not attach accessories to the windshield, or fit an extra-
wide mirror over the rear view mirror. If the SRS airbag deploys,those objects could become projectiles that could seriously in-jure vehicle occupants.

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HB1047BB
The driver’s SRS frontal airbag is stowed in the center portion of the
steering wheel. The passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag is stowed near the
top of the dashboard under an “SRS AIRBAG ” mark.
In a moderate to severe frontal collision, the driver ’s and front passen-
ger’ s SRS frontal airbags deploy and supplement the seatbelts by reduc-
ing the impact on the driver ’s and front passenger ’s head and chest.
Operation
CAUTION
Do not touch the SRS airbag system components around the steering wheel and dashboard with bare hands right after deploy-ment. Doing so can cause burns because the components can bevery hot as a result of deployment.

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SRS side airbag deploys as soon as a collision occurs.
After deployment, SRS sideairbag starts to deflate immedi-
ately. HB0359
The SRS side airbag can function only when the ignition switch is in the “ON” position.
The driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS side airbags deploy indepen-
dently of each other since each has its own impact sensor. Also, the
SRS side airbag deploys independently of the frontal airbags in thesteering wheel and instrument panel. An impact sensor is incorporated into each of the vehicle ’s center pil-
lars. If either sensor detects a certain predetermined amount of force
during a side impact collision, the control module sends a signal to
the side airbag module on the impacted side of the vehicle, instruct-
ing it to inflate the SRS side airbag. Then the side airbag module pro-duces gas, which instantly inflates the SRS side airbag. After the de-
ployment, the SRS side airbag immediately starts to deflate. The time
required from detecting impact to the deflation of the SRS side airbag
after deployment is shorter than the blink of an eye.
The SRS side airbag deploys even when no one occupies the seat on the side of which an impact is applied.