belt AUDI S7 2016 Owner's Manual

Safety belts
-Failure to pay attention to the warning light
that come on, could lead to personal injury.
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles.
F ig. 147 Unbelted occupants in a vehicle heading for a wall
Fig . 148 The vehicle crashes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess energy which var­ies 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.
Vehicle speed is the most significant factor.
If the
speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50 km/
h), the energy increases 4 times!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not us­
ing safety belts¢
fig . 147, they will keep moving
at the same speed the vehicle was moving just
before the crash, until something stops them -
here, the wa ll
c> fig. 148.
136
The same principles apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is invo lved in a frontal collision. Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50 km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
(2,000 lbs, or 1,000 kg) or more. At greater
speeds, these forces are even higher .
Peop le who do not use safety belts are also not
attached to their vehicle. In a fronta l co llision
they will also keep moving forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash.
Of course, the laws of phys ics don't just apply to
frontal coll is ions, 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!
Fig. 149 A driver not wearing a safety belt is violently
thrown forwar d
Fig. 150 A rear passenge r not wea ring a safety belt will fly
forward and strike the drive r
Unbelted occupa nts are not able to resist the t re­
mendous forces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves. Without the benefit of safe ­
ty restraint systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam violently into the steering wheel, .,.

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instrument panel, windshield, or whatever else is
in the way~
fig. 149. This impact with the vehi­
cle interior has all the energy they had just before
the crash.
Never rely on airbags alone for protection. Even
when they deploy, airbags provide only additional
protection. Airbags are not supposed to deploy in
all kinds of accidents. Although your Audi is
equipped with airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the driver, 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 of­
fer protection in those accidents in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy or when they have al­
ready deployed . Unbelted occupants can also be
thrown out of the vehicle where even more severe
or fatal injuries can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly . Unbelted passengers
in the rear seats endanger not only themselves
but also the driver and other passengers
¢ fig. 150. In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
injure 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!
Fig. 151 Driver is correc tly restra ined in a sudden braking
maneuve r
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ­
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap-
Safety belts
plied to the body in an accident, and help prevent
the uncontrolled movement that can cause seri­
ous injuries . In addition, safety belts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle.
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give
them the benefit of being slowed down more
gently or "softly" through the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi­
neered into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
kinetic energy over a longer period of time, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tolerable" and less likely to cause injury.
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety belts can also substantially re­
duce the r isk of injury in other kinds of crashes.
So, whether you're on a long trip or just going to
the corner store, always buckle up and make sure
others do, too. Accident statist ics show that vehi­
cle occupants properly wearing safety belts have
a lower risk of being injured and a much better
chance of surviving an accident. Properly using
safety belts also greatly increases the ability of
the supplemental airbags to do their job in a col­ lision. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le­
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada.
Although your Audi is equipped with airbags, you still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for example, are activated only in some
frontal coll isions. The front airbags are not acti­
vated in all frontal coll is ions, in side and rear col­
lisions, in roll overs or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle. The same goes for the other airbag
systems in your Audi . So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained !
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 belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
137

Safety belts
_&. 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 correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be positioned properly on the body .
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small children, 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 while the vehicle is being driven .
- Never let any person ride with their feet on
the instrument panel or sticking out the
window or on the seat .
- Never
remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is moving . Doing so will increase your risk of
being injured or killed .
- 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 door 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 belt. However, spe­
cial clips may be required for the proper use
of some child restraint systems.
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an acci­
dent . Inspect belts regularly. If webbing,
bindings, buckles, or retractors are dam-
138
aged, have belts replaced by an authorized
Audi dealer 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
thorized Audi dealer. Replacement may be
necessary
even if damage cannot be clearly
seen. Anchorages that were loaded must al­
so be inspected.
- Never
remove, modify, disassemble, or try
to repair the safety belts yourself .
-Always keep the belts clean . Dirty belts may
not work properly and can impair the func­
tion of the inertia reel¢
table on page 207.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 152 Be lt buckl e and to ngue o n th e dri ver's se at
To provide maximum protection, s afety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wea r­
er's body.
... Adjust the front seat and head restra int proper ­
ly ¢
page 52, General informa tion.
... Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench is
in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt
q &_ .
.,. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis ¢&_ .
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢fig. 152.
... Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle .
II>

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Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safe ty belt is eq uipped w ith an automatic
be lt re tractor on the shou lder belt. This fea ture
l ocks the belt when the be lt is pulled o ut fast ,
d uring hard braking and in an accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
h ill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move free ly.
Safety belt preten sioner s
The safety belts are equipped w ith a be lt p reten ­
sioner that helps to tighten the safety belt and
remove s lack when the pretensioner is activated
c::> page 141. The funct ion of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warni ng light
c::> page 18.
Convert ible locking ret ra ctor
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertib le locking retrac­
tor that
m ust be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
c::> page 177 .
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can ca use
ser ious injury in an a cci dent
c::> page 139,
Safety belt position .
-Safety belts offe r optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that t he rear seat back­
re st to which the cente r rear safety belt* 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, i n a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attac h the sa fety belt to the buck le
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle will reduce safety be lt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious personal in­
jury.
- A passenger who is not p roperly rest rained
can be seriously in ju red by the safety belt it­
self when it moves from t he stronger parts
Safety belts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when yo u are secur ing a chi ld seat in the ve­
hicle
c::> page 179.
@ Tips
For information on safety belt pretensione rs,
r efer to
c::> page 141.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting ma xi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig . 1 53 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustme nt to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
A WARNING ~
Imp roperly posit ioned safety be lts can cause
se riou s pe rsonal injury in an accident.
- The s hou lder belt should lie as close to the
ce nter of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Hold the bel t
above the latch tongue and pull it evenly
across the ches t so t hat it sits as low as pos ­
sib le on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should always fit
snug ly
c::> fig. 153. Pu ll on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can ca use serio us
in juries by shifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable, soft t issue and cause serious injury .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information<=:>
page 137.
139

Safety belts
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
correctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 154 Safety belt posit ion during pregnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be pos itioned correctly on the wear­
er's body ¢
page 139 .
... Adjust the front seat and adjustab le head re­
stra int* correctly ¢
page 52, General informa­
tion .
... Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis¢
fig. 154, ¢ ,.&. .
... Inse rt the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢page 138, fig . 152.
... Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos­
sible across the pelvis and below the round­
ing of the abdomen .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢ A in Fasten­
ing safety belts on page 139 .
140
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped.
.,,
Fig. 155 Re leasing th e tongue from th e buckle
... Push the red release button on the buckle
¢ fig. 155. The belt tongue will spring out of
the buckle
¢ A.
... Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Doing so will increase your risk of be­
ing injured or killed .
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment, the three point safety belt strap routing
can be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size.
Fig. 156 Safety belt heigh t adjustment for the front seats
- loop -around fittings
0 ,-. N 0 :i: .. m
The shoulder belt should lie as close to the center
of the collar bone as possible and should fit well
on the body
¢ ,.&. in Safety belt position on
page 139.
~

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~ Push the loop-aro und fittings up ¢ fig. 156 @,
or
~ squeeze together the (D button, and push the
loop-around fittings
do wn@ .
~ Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is properly engaged.
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth­
er important information
¢ page 137.
With the front seats, the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po­
sition of the safety belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause se­
vere injuries .
Wearing safety be lts improperly can cause seri­
ous injury or death. Safety belts can on ly work
when they are correct ly posit ioned on the body .
Imp roper seat ing posit ions reduce the effective­
n ess of safety belts and will even inc rease the risk
of inju ry and death by moving the sa fety be lt to
cr it ica l areas of the body. Improper seat ing posi­
tions also increase the risk of ser ious injury and
deat h when an airbag deploys and stri kes an oc­
cupant who is not in t he cor rect seating posit ion .
A driver is responsible for the safety of all veh icle
occupants and espec ially for children. Therefore :
~ Never permit anyone to ass ume an inco rrect sit-
t ing position in the vehicle while trave ling
¢ ,& .
A WARNING
Imprope rly worn safety belts increase the risk
of serious personal injury and death whe never
a vehicle is be ing used.
- Always make sure that al l vehicle occupants
are co rrectly restrained and stay in a cor rect
sea ting pos it ion whenever the veh icle is be­
ing used.
- Always read and heed all WARNI NGS and
ot her important i nfo rmat ion
¢page 137 .
Safety bel ts
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity and in a rollover, safety belts
are tensioned automatically.
Reversible safety belt tensioners
The safety belts on the front seats are eq uipped
with power reversib le tensioners. The fo llow ing
funct ions are availab le when the driver's/front
passenge r's safety belts are fastened:
- Automatic tens ioners : at the start of a drive,
the safety belts automat ica lly adjust to the
passenger after a certain time per iod or vehicle
speed. To sw itch the automat ic tensioners off,
s e lect the following in the MMI:
!CA RI fu nction
button
> (Car )* systems > Vehicle s etting s >
Seats > Driver's seat or Pass enger' s seat > Au­
tomatic belt ten sioner
> Off .
- In ce rtai n dr iv ing s ituations, the safety belts
may tighten w ith a revers ible tens ion ing f unc­
t ion
¢ page 185.
-The s afety be lt s may also t igh ten wi th th is re-
versible tens ion ing funct ion in m inor collisions.
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equ ipped with safe ty belt
pretensioners . The system is act ivated by se nsors
i n front, side and rea r-e nd coll is ions of great se­
ver ity and in a ro llover. This tig htens the belt and
ta kes up belt slack¢ .&.
in Service and disposal of
safety belt pre tensioner on page 14 2.
Taking up
t h e slack he lps to reduce forward occupa nt
movement during a collision.
A WARNING
- It is poss ible for the pretens ioners to deploy
incorrectly.
- The pyrotechnic system can only provide protection for one coll is ion. If the pyrotech­
n ic pretensioners deploy, the pretens ion ing
sys tem must be replaced .
(1) Tips
The pyrotechnic safety be lt pretensioners can
o nl y dep loy once . .,.
141

Safe ty belt s
- The safety belt pretensioners do not deploy
in minor frontal and side collisions, in rear­
end collisions, in rollovers and in collis ions
invo lv ing very little impact force.
- A fine dust is released when the pyrotechnic
safety be lt pretensioners dep loy. This is nor­
mal and is not caused by a fire in the vehi­
cle.
- The relevant safety requirements must be observed when the vehicle or components
of the system are scrapped . A qualified
dealersh ip is familiar with these regulations
and will be p leased to pass on the informa­
tion to you.
- Be sure to observe all safety, environmental
and othe r regulations if the vehicle or indi­
v idual parts of the system, particularly the
safety be lt or a irbag, are to be disposed. We
r ecommend you have your autho rized Aud i
dealer perform this service for you .
Service and disposal of safety belt preten­
sioner
The safety be lt pretensioners are parts of the
safety belts on your Audi . Installing, removing ,
servicing or repa iring of belt pretens ioners can
damage the safety belt system and prevent it
from working correctly in a co llision.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effect iveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that d isca rded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
env ironment.
_& WARNING
-
Imprope r care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing a safety belt preten­
sioner from activating w hen needed or acti­
vating it unexpectedly :
- The be lt pretensioner system can be activat­
ed only once .
If belt pretensioners have
been act ivated, the system must be re­
placed .
- Never repa ir, adjust, or change any parts of
the safety be lt system .
142
-Safety belt systems including safety belt
pretens ioners cannot be repa ired. Spec ial
procedures are required for remova l, instal­
lation and disposal of this system.
- For any work on the safety belt system, we
strongly recommend that you see your au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified technician
who has an Audi approved repair manual, train ing and spec ial equ ipment necessary .
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and pretension­
e rs might be classified as Perchlorate Material
-special handling may apply, see
www .dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo­
r ate. When the vehicle or pa rts of the re­
straint system incl uding airbag modules safe­
ty belts w ith pretens ioners are scrapped, all
applicable laws and regulations must be ob­
served . Your a uthorized Audi dealer is familiar
with these requirements and we recommend
that you have your dea ler perform this serv ice
for you.

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Airbag system Important information
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job, occupants must always
properly wear their safety belts and be in a prop­ er seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always:
.,. Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly
r:> page 12 7,
.,. Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
9 page 53,
.,. Wear safety belts properly r::> page 137 ,
.. Always properly use the proper child restraint
to protect children
r:> page 167.
In a collision, airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force. The
supplemental airbags can cause injuries if the
driver or the front seat passeng er is not seated
properly . Therefo re in order to help the ai rbag to
do its job, it is important, both as a driver and as
a passenger to si t properly at all times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protection in certain frontal collisions
r:> page 12 7, Correct
passenger seating positions .
For details on the
operation of the seat adjustment controls
r::> page 53.
It's especially important that children are proper ­
ly restrained
r:> page 167.
There is a lot that the driver and the passengers
can and must do to help the individual safety fea­
tures installed in your Audi work together as a
system.
Proper seating position is important so that the
front airbag on the driver side can do its job . If
you have a physical impairment or condition that
prevents you from sitting properly on the driver
seat with the safety belt properly fastened and
Airbag system
reaching the pedals, or if you have concerns with
regard to the function or operation of the Ad­
vanced Airbag System, please contact your au­
thori zed Audi dealer or qualified workshop, or
call Audi Customer Relations at 1-800-822-2834
for possible modifications to your vehicle.
When the airbag system deploys, a gas generator
will fill the airbags, break open the padded cov­ ers, and inflate between the steering wheel and
the driver and between the instrument panel and
the front passenger . The airbags will deflate im­
mediately after deployment so that the front oc­
cupants can see through the windshield again
without interruption.
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye , so
fast that many people don't even realize that the airbags have deployed. The airbags also inflate
with a great deal of force and nothing should be
in their way when they deploy. Front airbags in
combination with properly worn safety belts slow
down and limit the occupant's forward move­
ment . Together they help to prevent the driver
and front seat passenger from hitting parts of
the inside of the vehicle while reducing the forces
acting on the occupant during the crash . In this
way they help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and upper body in the crash . Airbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all frontal
collisions. The triggering of the airbag system de­
pends on the vehicle deceleration rate caused by
the collision and registered by the electronic con­
trol unit. If this rate is below the reference value
programmed into the control unit, the airbags
will not be triggered , even though the car may be
badly damaged as a result of the collision. Vehi­
cle damage, repair costs or even the lack of vehi­
cle damage is not necessarily an indication of
whe ther an airbag should infla te or not.
Since the circumstances will vary considerably between one collision and another, it is not possi­
ble to define a range of vehicle speeds that will
cover every possible kind and angle of impact
that will always trigger the airbags . Important
factors include, for example, the nature (hard or
soft) of the object which the car hits, the angle of
impact, vehicle speed , etc. The front airbags will ..,.
143

Airbag syste m
also not inflate in s ide or rear collisions, or in roll ­
overs.
A lwa ys rem ember : Airbags will deploy on ly once,
and only in certain kinds of collis ions. Your safety
be lts are a lways there to offer p rotection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy, or when they have already deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another vehicle after the first collision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supp lementary restra int and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The airbag system works most
effectively when used w ith the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
c::> page 135.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel or in­
strument panel wil l decrease the effect ive­
ness of the airbags and will increase the risk
o f personal injury in a collision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the steer ing whee l, investi­
gate whether adaptive equipment may be
available to help you reach the pedals and
increase yo ur seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- All veh icle occupants and especia lly children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle du ring a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained child is also at greater risk of injury or death
thro ugh contac t wit h an inflat ing airbag.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning forward, s it­
t ing s ideways o r out of position in any way,
yo ur risk of in jury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serious inju ries and
c ould even be killed if you are up against the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag.
144
-
- To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly
c::> page 138, Safety belts.
- Always make certain that ch ildren age 12 or
younger always ride in the rear seat. If chil­
dren are not properly restrained, they may
be severe ly injured or killed when an a irbag
inflates.
- Never let ch ildren ride unrestra ined or im­
prope rly restrained in the vehicle . Ad just the
front sea ts prope rly .
- Never ride with the back rest reclined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
c::>page 127.
-Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both feet
on the f loor in front of the seat to help p re­
vent serious injur ies to the legs and hips if
the airbag infla tes.
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat to
transport objects . Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag o r the front air­
b ag du ring bra king or in a sudden maneu­
ver . Ob jects near the airbags can become
projectiles and cause in jury when an airbag
inflates.
A WARNING
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must be replaced.
- Use on ly original equipment airbags ap­
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary too ls and
diagnostic equipment to properly rep lace
any airbag in you r vehicle and assure system
effectiveness in a crash.
- Never perm it salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in your vehicle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be s ure to read the important information and
hee d the WAR NIN GS for import ant details .,..

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-Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
ins tructions prov ided with the ch ild seat or
carrier.
- Always make sure that t he re is no thing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not, or to signal that it is occ upied by some­
one who is heav ier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of addi­
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it should
be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a
way that is different from the way it wou ld
have worked without the object on the seat.
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu­
pants.
F ig . 157 Locat ion of d river a irbag: in stee ring wheel
Fig . 158 Locat ion of front passenger's a irbag: in the instru ­
ment pa nel
Your vehicle is equipped w ith an "Advanced Air­
bag System" in compl iance with Un ited States
Ai rb ag system
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your vehi­
cle was manufactured. The safety be lts for the
seats have "pretensioners" that help to take slack
out of the belt system. The pretensioners are also
activated by the electron ic control unit for the
airbag system .
The front safety belts also have load limiters to help reduce the forces applied to the body in a
crash .
The airbag for the driver is in the steering wheel
hub
c:> fig . 157 and the airbag for the front pas­
senger is in the instrument pane l
c:>fig. 158. The
general location of the airbags is marked ''AIR ­
BAG".
There is a lot you need to know about the a irbags
in your vehicle. We urge you to read the detailed
information about airbags, safety belts and child
safety in this and the other chapte rs that make
up the owner's literature . Please be sure to heed
the WAR NINGS - they are extremely importa nt
fo r yo ur safety and the safety of you r passengers,
especially infants and small children .
_& WARNING
=
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supp lemental protection.
- Airbag work most effective ly when used
with p roperly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wea r you r safety belts and
make sure tha t everybo dy in your vehicle is
properly rest rained.
- Always hold the steering wheel w ith both
hands on the outside of the steering wheel
rim at the 9:00 o'clock and 3:00 o'clock po ­
sitions to help reduce the risk of persona l in­
jury if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never ho ld the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands any­
where inside the steering wheel or on the
steer ing wheel hub. Holding the steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of
severe injury to the arms, ha nds, and head if
the dr iver airbag deploys .
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147