belt AUDI A6 2018 User Guide

a co .... N
" N .... 0 0 \.J ' Driving safety
Basics
Safe driving habits
Please remember -safety first!
The individual safety features of your vehicle can
work together as a system to help protect you
and your passengers in a wide range of accidents.
These features cannot work as a system if they
are not always correctly adjusted and correctly
used .
This chapter contains important informat ion,
tips, instructions and warnings that you need to
read and observe for your own safety, the safety
of your passengers and others . We have summar­
iz ed here what you need to know about safety
belts, airbags, child restraints as well as child
safety. Your safety is for us priority number 1. Al­
ways observe the information and warnings in
this section -for your own safety as well as that
of your passengers.
The informa tion in t his section applies to all
model versions of your vehicle. Some of the fea ­
tures described in this sections may be standard
eq uip ment on some models, or may be optional
equ ipment on others. If you are not sure, ask
your author ized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
-Always make sure that you follow the in­
struct ions and heed the WARNINGS in this
Manual. It is in your i nterest and in the in­
terest of your passengers .
-
-Always keep the complete Owner's Litera­
ture in your Audi when you lend or sell yo ur
vehicle so that this important information
w ill always be available to the driver and
passengers.
-Always keep the Owner's literature handy so
that you can find it easily if you have ques­
tions .
Driving safety
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody 's job ! Vehicle and occupant
safety always depends on the informed and care­
ful driver .
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers,
before driving always:
.. Make sure that a ll lights and signals are operat­
ing correctly.
.. Make sure tha t the tire pressure is correct .
.. Make sure that all w indows are clean and afford
good vis ibility to the outs ide.
.. Secure all luggage and othe r items ca refully
¢ page 54, ¢page 53 .
.. Make sure that nothing can interfere with the
peda ls .
.. Adjust front seat, head restraint and mirrors
correct ly for your height.
.. Instruct passengers to adjust the head re­
straints according to their height.
.. Make sure to use the right child restraint cor­
rectly to protect children
¢ page 166, Child
safety .
.. Sit properly in your seat and make sure t hat
your passengers do the
same¢ page 47, Seats
and storage.
.. Fasten your safety belt and wear it properly. Al­
so instruct your passengers to fasten their safe­
ty belts
properly ¢ page 134 .
What impairs driving safety?
Safe driving is directly related to the condition of
the vehicle , the driver as well as the driver 's abili­
ty to concentrate on the road without being dis­
tracted.
The driver is responsible for the safety of the ve ­
hicle and a ll of its occupants. If your ability to
drive is impa ired, safety risks for everybody in the
vehicle increase and you a lso become a hazard to
everyone else on the road
¢ &_ . Therefore:
.. Do not let yourse lf be distracted by passengers
or by using a cellular telephone .
.. NEVER drive when your driving abi lity is im­
pa ired (by med ications, alcohol, drugs, etc .) .
.. Observe all traffic laws, rules of the road and
speed lim its and plain common sense .
125

Driving sa fety
,.. ALWAYS adjust your speed to road, traffic and
weather conditions.
,.. Take frequent breaks on long trips. Do not drive
for more than two hours at a stretch.
,.. Do NOT drive when you are tired, under pres­
sure or whe n you are stressed .
A WARNING
Impaired driv ing safety inc reases the risk of
ser ious persona l inju ry and death whenever a
vehicle is being used.
Correct passenger
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver sea ting po sition is impor tan t
for safe, relaxed driving .
Fig. 138 Correc t seat ing posit ion
F or your own safety and to reduce the risk of in­
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend
that you adjust the driver 's seat to the following
position :
,.. Adjust the dr iver's seat so tha t you can easily
push the pedals all the way to the floor whi le
keeping your knee(s) s light ly
bent ¢ ,A.
,.. Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position so that your back comes in
full contact with it when you drive.
"' Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a dis­
tance of at least 10 inches (25 cm ) between the
stee ring wheel and your breast
bone ¢ fig. 138 .
If not possib le, see you r autho rized Aud i dea l­
ersh ip about adaptive equipment .
126
,.. Adjust the steering wheel so that the steering
wh eel and airbag cover points at your chest and
not at your face.
"' Grasp the top of the steering wheel with your
elbow(s) slightly bent.
"' F or ad justab le head rest raints: Adjust the head
restraint so t he upper edge is as even as possi­
ble with the top of your head . If that is not pos­
sible, t ry to adjust the head restraint so tha t it
is a s close to this pos it ion as poss ible . M ove the
he ad restraint so tha t it is as close to the back
o f the head as possible.
"' Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
¢ page 137 .
"'Always keep both feet in the footwell so that
you are in contro l of the veh icle at all times .
Fo r detail ed information on how to adjust the
dr iver's seat,
see ¢ page 47.
A WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted , out of position or
too close to the airbag can be seriously in-
jured by an airbag as it unfo lds . To help re-
duce the risk of serio us pe rsonal i njury:
-Always adjust the driver's seat and the steer ing whee l so that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between you r breastbone
and the steering wheel.
- Always ad just the driver's seat and the
steer ing whee l so that the re are at least
4 inch es (10 cm) between the knees a nd the
lower part of the ins trumen t panel.
-Always hold t he s teering wheel on the out­
side of t he steering wheel r im with yo ur
hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock posi­
tions to help reduce the risk of personal in­
jury if the dr iver 's airbag inflates.
-Never hold the stee ring wheel at the
12 o'clock position or with you r hands at
other positions inside the steer ing whee l
rim o r on the steering wheel hub. Holding
the steering wheel the wrong way can cause
serious injuries to the hands, arms and head
-
if the driver's airbag inflates . .,_

a co .... N
" N .... 0 0 \,;J ' -Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supplemen­
tal driver's airbag to protect you in a colli­ sion .
- Always sit in an upright position and never
lean against or place any part of your body
too close to the area where the airbags are
located .
- Before driving, always adjust the front seats
properly and make sure that all passengers
are properly restrained .
- For adjustable head restraints : before driv ­
ing, always also adjust the head restraints
properly .
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle is moving . Your seat may move unexpectedly
and you could lose control of the vehicle.
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests are
tilted back, the greater the risk of injury due
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt
and improper seating position.
- Children must always ride in child seats
~ page 166. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger
seat ¢ page 142 .
Proper seating position for the front
passenger
The proper front passenger seating position is
important for safe, r elaxed driving.
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of in­
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend that you adjust th e seat for the front passenger
to the following position:
.. Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position and your back comes in full
contact with it wh enever the vehicle is moving.
.. For adjustable head restraints: adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi­
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos­
sible , try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible
~ page 128. Move the head restraint so that it
is as close to the back of the head as possible.
Driving safety
.. Keep both feet flat on the floor in front of the
front passeng er seat.
.. Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
¢ page 137 .
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front pass enger's s eat, see
¢ pag e 47.
A WARNING
= -
Front seat passengers who are unbelted, out
of position or too close to the airbag can be
seriously injured or killed by the airbag as it
unfolds . To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Passengers must always sit in an upright po­
sition and never lean against or place any part of their body too close to the area
where the airbags are located.
- Passengers who are unbelted, out of posi­
tion or too close to the airbag can be seri­
ously injured by an airbag as it unfolds with
g reat force in the blink of an eye.
- Always make sure that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between the front pas­
senger's breastbone and the instrument panel.
- Always make sure that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the front passen­
ger's knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the
safety belt belonging to that seat .
- Before driving, always adjust the front pas­
senger seat properly.
- For adjustable head restraints: before driv­
ing, always also adjust the head restraints
properly .
- Always keep your feet on the floor in front
of the seat. Never rest them on the seat, in­
strument panel, out of the window, etc. The
airbag system and safety belt will not be
able to protect you properly and can even in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash .
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests are
tilted back, the greater the risk of injury due
~
127

Driving safety
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt
and improper seating position.
- Children must always ride in child seats
c> page 166. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat
c> page 142.
Proper seating positions for passengers in
rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with both
feet on the floor consistent with their physical
size and be properly restrained whenever the
ve­
hicle is in use.
To reduce the risk of injury caused by an incorrect
seating position in the event of a sudden braking
maneuver or an accident, your passengers on the
rear bench seat must always observe the follow­
i ng:
• For adjustable head restra ints: adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi­
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos­
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible
c> page 128 .
• Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat.
• Fasten and wear safety belts properly
c>page 137.
• Make sure that children are always properly re­
strained in a child restraint that is appropriate
for their size and age
c::> page 166.
_& WARNING
Passengers who are improperly seated on the
rear seat can be seriously injured in a crash.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the
safety belt belonging to that seat .
- Safety belts only offer maximum protection
when the safety belts are properly posi­
tioned on the body and securely latched. By
not sitting upright, a rear seat passenger
in­
creases the risk of personal injury from im­
properly positioned safety belts!
128
-For adjustable head restraints: always ad­
just the head restraint properly so that it
can give maximum protection.
Proper adjustment of head restraints
App lies to : vehicles with adjustable head restra ints
Correctly adjusted head restraints are an impor­
tant part of your vehicle's occupant restraint sys­
tem and can help to reduce the risk of injuries in
accident situations.
Fig. 139 Head restra int: viewed from t he front
The head restraints must be correctly adjusted to
achieve the best protection.
• Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge is
as even as possib le w ith the top of your head . If
that is not possible, try to adjust the head
re­
straint so that it is as close to this position as
possible
c> fig. 139 . Move the head restraint so
that it is as close to the back of the head as
possible.
• If the re is a passenger on the rear center seat­
ing position, slide the center head restraint
up­
ward at least to the next notch.
Adjusting head restraints
c> page 48.
_& WARNING
All seats are equipped with head restraints.
Driving without head restraints or with head
restraints that are not properly adjusted in­
creases the risk of serious or fata l neck injury
dramatically . To help reduce the risk of injury:
-Always drive with the head restraints in
place and properly adjusted.
- Every person in the vehicle must have a
properly adjusted head restraint.
-

a co .... N
" N .... 0 0 \.J ' -Always make sure each person in the vehicle
properly adjusts their head restraint. Adjust
the head restra int so the upper edge is as
even as possible w ith the top of your head .
If that is not possible, try to adjust the head
restra int so that it is as close to th is position
as possib le. Move the head restra in t so that
it is as close to t he b ack of the he ad as pos ­
sible.
- Never attempt to adjust head restra int
w hil e d riving. If you have dr iven off and
must adjust the dr ive r headrest for any rea­
son, first stop the vehicle safely before at­
tempting to adjust the head restraint .
- Children must a lways be proper ly restrained
in a chi ld restraint that is appropriate for
their age and size
r=) page 166.
Examples of improper seating positions
Th e occupant r estraint syst em con only r educ e
the risk of injury if vehicle occupants ore properly
seated.
I mp roper seating posi tions can cause se rious in ­
jury or death . Safety belts can only work when
they ar e properly positioned on the body. Im ­
prope r seating positions reduce the effectiveness
of safe ty belts and w ill even increase the r isk of
injury and death by moving the s afety belt to crit­
ical areas of the body . Improper seating posit ions
also increase the risk of ser ious injury and death
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occupant
who is not i n the prope r seat ing pos ition. A d rive r
i s respons ible for the safety of a ll vehicle occu ­
pants and especia lly fo r children . There fore:
"' Never allow anyone to assume an inco rrect
seat ing pos it ion w hen t he ve hicle is being used
r=) & .
The follow ing bulletins list only some sample po­
sitions that will increase the risk of serious inju ry
and dea th. O ur hope is that these examp les w ill
make you more aware of seat ing pos it ions tha t
are dangerous .
Therefore, wh enever th e vehicle is moving:
- never stand up in the veh icle
- never stand on the seats
Dri ving saf ety
- never kneel on the seats
- neve r ride wit h the seatback recl ined
- neve r lie down on the seats
- neve r lean up against the instrument panel
- never s it on the edge of the seat
- never s it sideways
- never lean out the window
- never put your feet out the window
- neve r put your feet on t he instr ument pane l
- neve r rest your feet on the seat cushion or back
of the seat
- neve r ride in the footwell
- never ride in the cargo area
A WARNING
-
Imp roper seating positions inc rease the risk
of ser ious perso nal in jury and death whenever
a ve hicl e is being u sed .
- Always make sure that all ve hicle occupants
stay in a p roper seating posit ion and a re
p roperly restra ined whe never the veh icle is
be ing used.
Driver's and front
passenger's footwell
Important safety instructions
Applies to: vehicles with knee airbags
A WARNING
= -
A lways make s ure t hat the knee airbag can in­
flate w ithout interference. Objects between
yourself and the airbag can increase the risk
of injury in an accide nt by interfering with the
way t he a irbag dep loys or by be ing pushed in­
to you as the a irbag dep loys .
- No persons (ch ildren) or animals should ride
in the footwell in front of the passenger
seat . If the a irbag deploys, this can res ult in
ser io us or fatal injur ies.
- N o objects of a ny kind should be ca rr ied in
the footwell a rea in front of the dr ive r's or
p a sse nger's seat. B ulky objects (shopp ing
b ags, for exam ple) can h amper o r preven t
proper dep loymen t of the airbag . Sma ll ob ­
jects can be thrown thro ugh the vehicle if
129

Safety belts
Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety be lts are neces­
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly.
.,. Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automob ile acc idents.
For your protection and that of your passen­
gers, always correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, or physically im­
paired persons must also use safety belts.
Like all vehicle occupants, they are more
likely to be serious ly injured if th ey do not
wear safety belts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother
-throughout
the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of five seating positions:
two in the front and three in the rear. Each seat­
ing position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
inju ry and death.
- Never strap more tha n one person, includ­
i ng small children, into any belt. It is espe­
cially dangerous to place a safety belt over a
child sitting on you r lap.
- Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety belts available.
134 -
Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
proper ly restrained with a separate safety
belt or child restraint.
~ Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger (on USA models only) to remind you about the importance of buckling­
up .
Fig. 140 Safety belt warn ing lig ht in the instrument clus ­
ter
-enlarged
Before driving off , always:
.,. Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly .
U) N
"' 9 N .,. Make sure that your passengers a lso buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts .
.,. Protect children with a ch ild restraint system
appropr iate for the size and age .
The warning light . in the instrument cluster
lights up when the ign it ion is on as a reminder to
fasten the safety belts . In addition , you will hear
a war ning tone for a certain period of time.
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your
passengers also properly put on their safety
belts.
A WARNING
-
- Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
inj ury and death in automobile accidents.
Fo r your protection and that of your passen­
gers, a lways correct ly wear safety belts
when t he vehicle is moving .
- Fai lure to pay attention to the warning light
that come on, cou ld lead to personal injury.

a co ,...,
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0 0 \,;J ' Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles .
Fig. 141 Unbe lted occupants in a vehicle heading for a wall
Fig. 14 2 The vehicle crashes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess energy which var ­
ies with vehicle speed and body weight. Engi­
neers call this energy "kinetic energy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Veh icle speed is the most significant facto r.
If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50
km/h), the energy increases 4 times!
Because the passengers of t his veh icle are not us­
ing safety belts
r::!.> fig. 141, they will keep mov ing
at the same speed the vehicle was moving j ust
before the crash, unt il something stops them -
here, the wall
r::!.> fig . 142.
The same pr inc iples apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is involved in a frontal collision. Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to SO km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
Safety bel ts
(2,000 lbs, o r 1,000 kg) or more . At greater
speeds, these forces are even higher.
People who do not use safety belts are a lso not
attached to the ir vehicle. In a fron tal coll is ion
they will also keep moving forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash.
Of course, the laws of physics don't just apply to
frontal collisions, they determine what happens
in all kinds of accidents and collisions.
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed . Always wear your safety belts!
F ig. 143 A driver not wearing a safety belt is violently
thrown forward
Fig . 144 A rear passenger not wearing a safety belt will f ly
forwa rd and strike the driver
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the tre­
mendous forces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves. W ithout the benefit of safe­
ty restraint systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam v io lently into the stee ring wheel, in­
strument pane l, windshield, o r whatever e lse is
in the way
r::!.>fig . 143. T his impact with the vehi­
cle inter ior has a ll the energy they had just be-
fore the crash.
IJI,,-
1 35

Safe ty belts
Never rely on airbags alone for protection . Even
when they deploy, airbags provide only additiona l
protection. Airbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
equipped w ith airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the dr iver, must wear safety belts cor ­
rectly in order to minimize the risk of severe in­
jury or death in a crash .
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always there
to offer protect ion in those accidents in w hich
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have a lready deployed. Unbel ted occupants can
a lso be thrown o ut of the ve hicle where eve n
mo re severe or fatal injur ies can occur .
It is also important for the rear passenge rs to
wear safety belts co rrectly. Unbel ted passengers
i n t he re ar seats endanger no t on ly themse lves
but also the drive r and other passengers
c::> fig . 144 . In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
in jure the driver and/or front seat passenger .
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It's simply
not true!
F ig . 14 5 Driver is co rrectly restrai ned in a sudde n brak ing
m aneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a b ig d iffer­
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap­
plied to the body in an accident, and he lp prevent
the uncont rolled moveme nt that can cause seri­
ous injur ies. In addition, safety be lts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle .
136
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and g ive
them the benefit of being s lowed down more
gently or "soft ly" thro ugh the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety feat ures engi­
neered into today 's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
k inet ic energy over a longe r per iod of t ime, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more "tole rab le" and less likely to cause inju ry .
Although these examples are based on a frontal
collision, safety be lts ca n also substantially re­
duce the r isk o f injury in ot her kinds of crashes.
So, whethe r you're on a long trip or just going to
the cor ne r store, a lways b uckle up and make s ure
othe rs do, too. Ac ciden t st at ist ics show that veh i­
cl e occupants prope rly wearing safety bel ts have
a lowe r risk of be ing injured and a m uch better
chance of surviving an acc ident . Properly using
safety be lts also great ly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col­
li sion. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le­
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada.
Although your Aud i is equipped with airbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for examp le, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags are not act i­
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear co l­
li sio ns, in rollovers or in cases whe re there is not
eno ugh deceler ation throug h impa ct to the front
of the vehicle . The same goes for the other a irbag
systems in your Audi. So, always wear your safety belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly rest rained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned
across the strongest bones of your body.
.,. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de­
scribed in this chapter.
.,. Make sure that your safety be lts are always
ready fo r use a nd a re not damaged .

a co ,...,
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" N ,...,
0 0 \,;J ' _& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death . Safety belts can work only
when used correctly.
-Always fasten your safety belts correctly be­ fore driving off and make sure all passen­
gers are cor rect ly restrained.
-For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be posit ioned properly on the body .
-Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small ch ildren, into any belt .
-Never place a safety belt over a child sitting
on your lap.
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat wh ile the vehicle is being driven.
- Never let any person ride w ith their feet on
the instrument panel or st icki ng out the
window o r on the seat.
- Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is moving . Do ing so will increase your risk of
being injured or k illed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable ob-
jects in or on your clothing, such as eye
glasses, pens, keys, etc ., as these may cause
injury.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam­
aged by being caught in doo r or seat hard­
ware.
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of position .
- Several layers of heavy clothing may inter­
fere with correct positioning of belts and re­ duce the overall effectiveness of the system.
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latching
securely .
-Never use comfort clips or devices that cre­
ate slack in the shoulder be lt . However, spe­
c ial clips may be requ ired for the prope r use
of some child restraint systems.
-Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt ha rdware can break in an acc i­
dent. I nspect belts regularly.
If webbing,
bind ings, buckles, or re tractors are dam-
Safet y bel ts
aged, have belts rep laced by an authorized
Aud i dea ler or qualified workshop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and loaded
in an accident must be replaced with the
correct replacement safety belt by an au­
thor ized Audi dealer. Replacement may be
necessary even if damage cannot be clearly
seen. Anchorages that were loaded must al­
so be inspected.
- Never remove, mod ify, d isassemble, or try
to repair the safety belts yourse lf.
-Always keep the belts clean . Dirty belts may
not work properly and can impair the func­
tion of th e inert ia reel
q table on page 223.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
F ig. 146 Belt buckle and tongu e on t he d river' s seat
To provide maximum protect ion, safety belts
must a lways be positioned correctly on the wear­
er 's body .
.. Adjust the front seat and head restraint proper­
ly
q page 47, Seats and storage.
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in an upright posit ion and securely latched in
p lace before using the belt
q ,&. .
.. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest and
pe lvis
q fig . 146, q ,&. .
.. Insert the tongue in to the co rrect buck le of
your seat unt il you hear it latch securely.
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is sec urely
latched in the buckle.
..,
1 37

Safe ty belts
Autom ati c s afet y belt retractors
Every safety be lt is equ ipped with an automatic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pu lled out fast,
during hard braking and in an accident. The belt may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. Dur ing normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move freely.
Safety belt p ret en sione rs
Safety belts w ith pretensioners he lp to tighten
the safety belt and remove s lack when the pre­
tensioners are activated
c;, page 140 . The func­
tion of the pretensioner is monitored by a warn­
ing light
c;, page 16 .
Convertibl e loc king r etracto r
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped w ith a convertible locking retrac­
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
¢ page 177 .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly pos itioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious injury in an
accident ¢ page 138,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k­
rest to which the center rea r safety be lt* is
attached is securely latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen­
ger will move forward with the backrest dur­
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong b uckle wi ll reduce safety belt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious person-a l in­
jury.
- A passenger who is not proper ly restrained
can be seriously in jured by the safety be lt it­
self when it
moves from the stronger parts
138
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­ men.
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve­
hicle
,=;, page 179 .
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to
c;, page 140 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts .
Fig. 147 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustment to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can cause
serio us pe rsonal injury in an a cc ident.
- The shou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Ho ld the belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos ­
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways f it
snug ly
c;, fig. 147. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by sh ifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious i nju ry .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
c;, page 136 .