warning CHEVROLET CORVETTE 2013 6.G Owner's Manual

Black plate (14,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2013 - crc2 - 11/8/12
3-14 Seats and Restraints
See your dealer to have the safety
belt assemblies inspected or
replaced.
New parts and repairs may be
necessary even if the safety belt
system was not being used at the
time of the crash.
Have the safety belt pretensioners
checked if the vehicle has been in a
crash, or if the airbag readiness light
stays on after you start the vehicle
or while you are driving. SeeAirbag
Readiness Light on page 5‑16.Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the front
outboard passenger.
.A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the driver.
.A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the front outboard
passenger.
All vehicle airbags have the word
AIRBAG on the trim or on a label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG is on the center of the
steering wheel for the driver and on
the instrument panel for the front
outboard passenger.
For seat-mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG is on the
side of the seatback closest to
the door. Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today's airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job.
Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:{WARNING
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt, even
with airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, not replace them. Also,
airbags are not designed to inflate
in every crash. In some crashes
safety belts are the only restraint.
See
When Should an Airbag
Inflate? on page 3‑17.
(Continued)

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Seats and Restraints 3-15
WARNING (Continued)
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce the chance of
hitting things inside the vehicle or
being ejected from it. Airbags are
“supplemental restraints”to the
safety belts. Everyone in the
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly, whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
{WARNING
Because airbags inflate with great
force and faster than the blink of
an eye, anyone who is up
against, or very close to, any
airbag when it inflates can be
seriously injured or killed. Do not
sit unnecessarily close to any
airbag, as you would be if sitting
on the edge of the seat or leaning
forward. Safety belts help keep
you in position before and during
a crash. Always wear the safety
belt, even with airbags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible
while still maintaining control of
the vehicle.
Occupants should not lean on or
sleep against the door or side
windows in seating positions with
seat-mounted airbags.
{WARNING
Children who are up against,
or very close to, any airbag when
it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Airbags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer protection
for adults and older children, but
not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle's safety belt
system nor its airbag system is
designed for them. Young
children and infants need the
protection that a child restraint
system can provide. Always
secure children properly in the
vehicle. To read how, see Older
Children on page 3‑26 orInfants
and Young Children on
page 3‑28.

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Seats and Restraints 3-17
Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
The driver and front outboard
passenger seat-mounted side
impact airbags are in the side of the
seatbacks closest to the door.
{WARNING
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into
that person causing severe injury
or even death. The path of an
inflating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories that
block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
When Should an Airbag
Inflate?
Frontal airbags are designed to
inflate in moderate to severe frontal
or near frontal crashes to help
reduce the potential for severe injuries mainly to the driver's or front
outboard passenger's head and
chest. However, they are only
designed to inflate if the impact
exceeds a predetermined
deployment threshold. Deployment
thresholds are used to predict how
severe a crash is likely to be in time
for the airbags to inflate and help
restrain the occupants.
Whether the frontal airbags will or
should deploy is not based primarily
on how fast the vehicle is traveling.
It depends on what is hit, the
direction of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down.
Frontal airbags may inflate at
different crash speeds depending on
whether the vehicle hits an object
straight on or at an angle, and
whether the object is fixed or
moving, rigid or deformable, narrow
or wide.
Thresholds can also vary with
specific vehicle design.

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Seats and Restraints 3-19
Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts by
distributing the force of the impact
more evenly over the
occupant's body.
But airbags would not help in many
types of collisions, primarily
because the occupant's motion is
not toward those airbags. SeeWhen
Should an Airbag Inflate? on
page 3‑17 for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts.
What Will You See after
an Airbag Inflates?
After the frontal and seat-mounted
side impact airbags inflate, they
quickly deflate, so quickly that some
people may not even realize the
airbags inflated. Some components
of the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the
airbags, see Where Are the
Airbags? on page 3‑16. The parts of the airbag that come
into contact with you may be warm,
but not too hot to touch. There may
be some smoke and dust coming
from the vents in the deflated
airbags. Airbag inflation does not
prevent the driver from seeing out of
the windshield or being able to steer
the vehicle, nor does it prevent
people from leaving the vehicle.
{WARNING
When an airbag inflates, there
may be dust in the air. This dust
could cause breathing problems
for people with a history of
asthma or other breathing trouble.
To avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon as
it is safe to do so. If you have
breathing problems but cannot
get out of the vehicle after an
airbag inflates, then get fresh air
by opening a window or a door.
If you experience breathing
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
problems following an airbag
deployment, you should seek
medical attention.
The vehicle has a feature that may
automatically unlock the doors, turn
the interior lamps on, turn on the
hazard warning flashers, and shut
off the fuel system after the airbags
inflate. You can lock the doors, turn
the interior lamps off, and turn the
hazard warning flashers off by using
the controls for those features.

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3-20 Seats and Restraints
{WARNING
A crash severe enough to inflate
the airbags may have also
damaged important functions in
the vehicle, such as the fuel
system, brake and steering
systems, etc. Even if the vehicle
appears to be drivable after a
moderate crash, there may be
concealed damage that could
make it difficult to safely operate
the vehicle.
Use caution if you should attempt
to restart the engine after a crash
has occurred.
In many crashes severe enough to
inflate the airbag, windshields are
broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may
also occur from the front outboard
passenger airbag.
.Airbags are designed to inflate
only once. After an airbag
inflates, you will need some new parts for the airbag system.
If you do not get them, the
airbag system will not be there
to help protect you in another
crash. A new system will include
airbag modules and possibly
other parts. The service manual
for the vehicle covers the need
to replace other parts.
.The vehicle has a crash sensing
and diagnostic module which
records information after a
crash. See
Vehicle Data
Recording on page 13‑18.
.Let only qualified technicians
work on the airbag system.
Improper service can mean that
the airbag system will not work
properly. See your dealer for
service.
Passenger Sensing
System
The vehicle has a passenger
sensing system for the front
outboard passenger position. The passenger airbag status indicator
will light in the rearview mirror when
the vehicle is started.
United States
Canada and Mexico
The words ON and OFF, or the
symbol for on and off, will be visible
during the system check. When the
system check is complete, either the
word ON or OFF, or the symbol for
on or off, will be visible. See
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator
on page 5‑17.

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Seats and Restraints 3-21
The passenger sensing system will
turn off the front outboard
passenger frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact airbag
under certain conditions. No other
airbag is affected by the passenger
sensing system.
The passenger sensing system
works with sensors that are part of
the front outboard passenger seat.
The sensors are designed to detect
the presence of a properly-seated
occupant and determine if the front
outboard passenger frontal airbag
and seat-mounted side impact
airbag should be allowed to inflate
or not.
According to accident statistics,
children are safer when properly
secured in a rear seat in the correct
child restraint for their weight and
size. We recommend that
rear-facing child restraints not be
transported in the vehicle, even if
the airbags are off.Never put a rear-facing child seat in
the front. This is because the risk to
the rear-facing child is so great,
if the airbag inflates.
{WARNING
A child in a rear-facing child
restraint can be seriously injured
or killed if the passenger frontal
airbag inflates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child
restraint would be very close to
the inflating airbag. A child in a
forward-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the
passenger frontal airbag inflates
and the passenger seat is in a
forward position.
Even if the passenger sensing
system has turned off the front
outboard passenger airbag(s), no
system is fail-safe. No one can
guarantee that an airbag will not
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
inflate under some unusual
circumstance, even though the
airbag(s) are off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints
in a rear seat, even if the
airbag(s) are off. If you secure a
forward-facing child restraint in
the front outboard passenger
seat, always move the seat as far
back as it will go. It is better to
secure the child restraint in a
rear seat.
If the vehicle does not have a rear
seat that will accommodate a
rear-facing child restraint, a
rear-facing child restraint should not
be installed in the vehicle, even if
the airbags are off.

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3-22 Seats and Restraints
The passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the front
outboard passenger frontal airbag
and seat-mounted side impact
airbag if:
.The front outboard passenger
seat is unoccupied.
.The system determines that an
infant is present in a rear-facing
infant seat.
.The system determines that a
small child is present in a child
restraint.
.The system determines that a
small child is present in a
booster seat.
.A front outboard passenger
takes his/her weight off of the
seat for a period of time.
.The front outboard passenger
seat is occupied by a smaller
person, such as a child who has
outgrown child restraints.
.There is a critical problem with
the airbag system or the
passenger sensing system.When the passenger sensing
system has turned off the front
outboard passenger frontal airbag
and seat-mounted side impact
airbag, the off indicator will light and
stay lit as a reminder that the
airbags are off. See
Passenger
Airbag Status Indicator on
page 5‑17.
The passenger sensing system is
designed to turn on the front
outboard passenger frontal airbag
and seat-mounted side impact
airbag anytime the system senses
that a person of adult size is sitting
properly in the front outboard
passenger seat.
When the passenger sensing
system has allowed the airbags to
be enabled, the on indicator will light
and stay lit as a reminder that the
airbags are active.
For some children who have
outgrown child restraints and for
very small adults, the passenger
sensing system may or may not turn
off the front outboard passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted
side impact airbag, depending upon
the person's seating posture and
body build. Everyone in the vehicle
who has outgrown child restraints
should wear a safety belt
properly
—whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
{WARNING
If the airbag readiness light ever
comes on and stays on, it means
that something may be wrong
with the airbag system. To help
avoid injury to yourself or others,
have the vehicle serviced right
away. See Airbag Readiness
Light on page 5‑16 for more
information, including important
safety information.

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3-24 Seats and Restraints
Additional Factors Affecting
System Operation
Safety belts help keep the
passenger in position on the seat
during vehicle maneuvers and
braking, which helps the passenger
sensing system maintain the
passenger airbag status. See
“Safety Belts”and“Child Restraints”
in the Index for additional
information about the importance of
proper restraint use.
If the shoulder portion of the belt is
pulled out all the way, the child
restraint locking feature will be
engaged. This may unintentionally
cause the passenger sensing
system to turn the airbag(s) off for
some adult size occupants. If this
happens, let the belt go back all the
way and start again.
A thick layer of additional material,
such as a blanket or cushion,
or aftermarket equipment such as
seat covers, seat heaters, and seat
massagers can affect how well the
passenger sensing system operates. We recommend that you
not use seat covers or other
aftermarket equipment except when
approved by GM for your specific
vehicle. See
Adding Equipment to
the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on
page 3‑25 for more information
about modifications that can affect
how the system operates.
{WARNING
Stowing of articles under the
passenger seat or between the
passenger seat cushion and
seatback may interfere with the
proper operation of the passenger
sensing system.
Servicing the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Airbags affect how the vehicle
should be serviced. There are parts
of the airbag system in several
places around the vehicle. Your
dealer and the service manual have
information about servicing the vehicle and the airbag system. To
purchase a service manual, see
Service Publications Ordering
Information on page 13‑16.
{WARNING
For up to 10 seconds after the
vehicle is turned off and the
battery is disconnected, an airbag
can still inflate during improper
service. You can be injured if you
are close to an airbag when it
inflates. Avoid yellow connectors.
They are probably part of the
airbag system. Be sure to follow
proper service procedures, and
make sure the person performing
work for you is qualified to do so.

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3-26 Seats and Restraints
Replacing Airbag System
Parts after a Crash
{WARNING
A crash can damage the airbag
systems in the vehicle.
A damaged airbag system may
not work properly and may not
protect you and your
passenger(s) in a crash, resulting
in serious injury or even death. To
help make sure the airbag
systems are working properly
after a crash, have them
inspected and any necessary
replacements made as soon as
possible.If an airbag inflates, you will need to
replace airbag system parts. See
your dealer for service.
If the airbag readiness light stays on
after the vehicle is started or comes
on when you are driving, the airbag
system may not work properly. Have
the vehicle serviced right away. See
Airbag Readiness Light on
page 5‑16.
Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown
booster seats should wear the
vehicle's safety belts.

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Seats and Restraints 3-27
The manufacturer's instructions that
come with the booster seat, state
the weight and height limitations for
that booster. Use a booster seat
with a lap-shoulder belt until the
child passes the below fit test:
.Sit all the way back on the seat.
Do the knees bend at the seat
edge? If yes, continue. If no,
return to the booster seat.
.Buckle the lap-shoulder belt.
Does the shoulder belt rest on
the shoulder? If yes, continue.
If no, then return to the
booster seat.
.Does the lap belt fit low and
snug on the hips, touching the
thighs? If yes, continue. If no,
return to the booster seat.
.Can proper safety belt fit be
maintained for the length of the
trip? If yes, continue. If no,
return to the booster seat.Q: What is the proper way to
wear safety belts?
A: An older child should wear a
lap-shoulder belt and get the
additional restraint a shoulder
belt can provide. The shoulder
belt should not cross the face or
neck. The lap belt should fit
snugly below the hips, just
touching the top of the thighs.
This applies belt force to the
child's pelvic bones in a crash.
It should never be worn over the
abdomen, which could cause
severe or even fatal internal
injuries in a crash.
According to accident statistics,
children and infants are safer when
properly restrained in a child
restraint system or infant restraint
system secured in a rear seating
position.
In a crash, children who are not
buckled up can strike other people
who are buckled up, or can be thrown out of the vehicle. Older
children need to use safety belts
properly.
{WARNING
Never allow more than one child
to wear the same safety belt. The
safety belt cannot properly spread
the impact forces. In a crash, they
can be crushed together and
seriously injured. A safety belt
must be used by only one person
at a time.