TOYOTA TACOMA 2004 (in English) Owner's Guide

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
CAUTION
Make sure the cap is tightened se-
curely to prevent fuel spillage in
the event of an accident.
Use only a genuine Toyota fuel tank
cap for replacement. It is designed
to regulate fuel tank pressure.

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS AND
CONTROLS
Occupant restraint systems
Seats26
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Front seats 26
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Swing −up jump seats 30
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Folding rear seatback 31
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Head restraints 32
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Armrest 33
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Seat belts 33
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SRS driver airbag and front passenger airbag 42
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Passenger airbag manual on −off switch 58
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Child restraint 59
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SECTION 1 3

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
While the vehicle is being driven, all ve-
hicle occupants should have the seatback
upright, sit well back in the seat and prop-
erly wear the seat belts provided.
CAUTION
Do not drive the vehicle unless the
occupants are properly seated. Do
not allow any passengers to sit on
top of a foldeddown seatback, or
in the luggage compartment or car-
go area. Persons not properly
seated and/or not properly re-
strained by seat belts can be se-
verely injured in the event of emer-
gency braking or a collision.
During driving, do not allow any
passengers to stand up or move
around between seats. Otherwise,
severe injuries can occur in the
event of emergency braking or a
collision.
Driver seat
CAUTION
The SRS driver airbag deploys with
considerable force, and can cause
death or serious injury especially if
the driver is very close to the airbag.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (“NHTSA”) advises:
Since the risk zone for driver airbag
is the first 50—75 mm (2—3 in.) of
inflation, placing yourself 250 mm (10
in.) from your driver airbag provides
you with a clear margin of safety.
This distance is measured from the
center of the steering wheel to your
breastbone. If you sit less than 250
mm (10 in.) away now, you can
change your driving position in sever-
al ways:
Move your seat to the rear as far
as you can while still reaching the
pedals comfortably.
Slightly recline the back of the
seat. Although vehicle designs vary,
many drivers can achieve the 250
mm (10 in.) distance, even with the
driver seat all the way forward, sim-
ply by reclining the back of the
seat somewhat. If reclining the back
of your seat makes it hard to see
the road, raise yourself by using a
firm, nonslippery cushion, or raise
the seat if your vehicle has that
feature.
If your steering wheel is adjustable,
tilt it downward. This points the air-
bag toward your chest instead of
your head and neck.
The seat should be adjusted as rec-
ommended by NHTSA above, while
still maintaining control of the foot
pedals, steering wheel, and your view
of the instrument panel controls.
Seats Front seats—
—Front seat precautions

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
Front passenger seats
CAUTION
The SRS front passenger airbag also
deploys with considerable force, and
can cause death or serious injury es-
pecially if the front passenger is very
close to the airbag. The front passen-
ger seat should be as far from the
airbag as possible with the seatback
adjusted, so the front passenger sits
upright.
CAUTION
Do not adjust the seat while the
vehicle is moving as the seat may
unexpectedly move and cause the
driver to lose control of the vehicle.
Be careful that the seat does not
hit a passenger or luggage.
After adjusting the seat position, re-
lease the lever and try sliding the
seat forward and backward to make
sure it is locked in position.
After adjusting the seatback, push
your body back against the seat to
make sure the seat is locked in
position.
Do not put objects under the seats.
Otherwise, the objects may interfere
with the seatlock mechanism or
unexpectedly push up the seat posi-
tion adjusting lever and the seat
may suddenly move, causing the
driver to lose control of the vehicle.
While adjusting the seat, do not put
your hands under the seat or near
the moving parts. Otherwise, your
hands or fingers may be caught and
injured.
—Seat adjustment precautions

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
Separate and split bench seatsNonsplit bench seat
1. SEAT POSITION ADJUSTING LEVERPull the lever up. Then slide the seat
to the desired position with slight
body pressure and release the lever.
2. SEATBACK ANGLE ADJUSTING LEVER
Lean forward and pull the lever up.
Then lean back to the desired angle
and release the lever.
CAUTION
To reduce the risk of sliding under
the lap belt during a collision, avoid
reclining the seatback any more than
needed. The seat belts provide maxi-
mum protection in a frontal or rear
collision when the driver and the
front passenger are sitting up straight
and well back in the seats. If you are
reclined, the lap belt may slide past
your hips and apply restraint forces
directly to the abdomen. In the event
of a frontal collision, the more the
seat is reclined, the greater the risk
of personal injury.
—Adjusting front seats

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
3. DRIVER’S SEAT CUSHION ANGLEADJUSTING KNOB
Turn the knob either way.
4. DRIVER’S SEAT LUMBAR SUPPORT ADJUSTING SWITCH
Push the control switch either way.
The amount of lumbar support will
change while the switch is pushed.
For easy access to the rear seat, do
this.
1. Lift the seatback angle adjusting lever or press the pedal behind the seat-
back.
The seat will slide forward.
2. Move the seat to the front −most posi-
tion.
After passengers are in, lift up the seat-
back and return the seat until it locks.
CAUTION
After putting back the seat, try
pushing the seat forward and rear-
ward to make sure it is secured in
place.
Never allow anyone to rest their
foot on the press pedal while the
vehicle is moving.
—Moving passenger ’s seat for
rear seat entry
(xtracab models)

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
Pull the seatback lock release lever and
fold down the seatback.
Hold the lever until you have swung the
seatback forward slightly.
CAUTION
When returning the seatback to the
upright position, observe the follow-
ing precautions in order to prevent
personal injury in a collision or sud-
den stop:
Make sure the seatback is securely
locked by pushing forward and rear-
ward on the top of the seatback.
Failure to do so will prevent the
seat belt from operating properly.
Make sure the seat belts are not
twisted or caught in the seatback
and are arranged in their proper
position and are ready to use.To raise the bottom cushion, pull it up.
To lower the bottom cushion, push it
down.
See “—Stowage precautions” in Section 2
for precautions when loading luggage.
CAUTION
When returning the bottom cushion to
its original position, make sure the
seat belts are not twisted or caught
under the bottom cushion and are ar-
ranged in their proper position and
are ready to use.
—Folding seatback
(regular cab models)Swingup jump seats
(xtracab models)

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
Pull the seatback lock release belt for-
ward and fold down the seat back.
CAUTION
When returning the seatback to the
upright position, observe the follow-
ing precautions in order to prevent
personal injury in a collision or sud-
den stop:
Make sure the seatback is securely
locked by pushing forward and rear-
ward on the top of the seatback.
Failure to do so will prevent the
seat belt from operating properly.
Make sure the seat belts are not
twisted or caught in the seatback
and are arranged in their proper
position and are ready to use.You can use the rear seatback as a tem-
porary table when the vehicle is stopped.
See “Seatback table” in Section 1−10 for
instructions.
CAUTION
To avoid serious injury:
Do not set up the rear seatback
table while the vehicle is moving.
Do not sit on the folded rear seat-
back table.
Folding rear seatback (double
cab models)

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2004 TACOMA from Sep. ’03 Prod. (OM35814U)
NOTICE
To prevent damage to the seat, avoid
putting heavy loads on the temporary
table.
Front
Rear (double cab models only)
For your safety and comfort, adjust the
head restraint before driving.
To raise: Pull it up.
To lower: Push it down while pressing the
lock release button.
On some models, you can also move the
head restraint forward or backward. If
such adjustment is desired, pull or push
the head restraint.
The head restraint is most effective when
it is close to your head. Therefore, using
a cushion on the seatback is not recom-
mended.
CAUTION
Adjust the center of the head re-
straint so that it is closest to the
top of your ears.
After adjusting the head restraint,
make sure it is locked in position.
Do not drive with the head re-
straints removed.
Head restraints