warning CHRYSLER PT CRUISER 2005 1.G User Guide

Wind Buffeting
Wind buffeting can be described as the perception of
pressure on the ears or a helicopter type sound in the
ears. Your vehicle may exhibit wind buffeting with the
windows down, or the sunroof (if equipped) in certain
open or partially open positions. This is a normal occur-
rence and can be minimized. If the buffeting occurs with
the rear windows open, open the front and rear windows
together to minimize the buffeting. If the buffeting occurs
with the sunroof open, adjust the sunroof opening to
minimize the buffeting.
OCCUPANT RESTRAINTS
Some of the most important safety features in your
vehicle are the restraint systems. These include the front
and rear seat belts for the driver and all passengers, front
airbags for both the driver and front passenger and if
equipped, side airbags for both the driver and front
passenger. If you will be carrying children too small foradult-size seat belts, your seat belts or the LATCH feature
also, can be used to hold infant and child restraint
systems.
Please pay close attention to the information in this
section. It tells you how to use your restraint system
properly to keep you and your passengers as safe as
possible.
WARNING!
In a collision, you and your passengers can suffer
much greater injuries if you are not properly buck-
led up. You can strike the interior of your vehicle or
other passengers, or you can be thrown out of the
vehicle. Always be sure you and others in your
vehicle are buckled up properly.
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Buckle up even though you are an excellent driver, even
on short trips. Someone on the road may be a poor driver
and cause a collision that includes you. This can happen
far away from home or on your own street.
Research has shown that seat belts save lives, and they
can reduce the seriousness of injuries in a collision. Some
of the worst injuries happen when people are thrown
from the vehicle. Seat belts reduce the possibility of
ejection and the risk of injury caused by striking the
inside of the vehicle.Everyonein a motor vehicle should
be belted at all times.
Lap/Shoulder Belts
All the seats in your vehicle are equipped with Lap/
Shoulder Belts.
The belt webbing retractor is designed to lock during
very sudden stops or collisions. This feature allows the
shoulder part of the belt to move freely with you undernormal conditions. But in a collision, the belt will lock
and reduce the risk of your striking the inside of the
vehicle or being thrown out.
WARNING!
•It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area,
inside or outside of a vehicle. In a collision,
people riding in these areas are more likely to be
seriously injured or killed.
•Do not allow people to ride in any area of your
vehicle that is not equipped with seats and seat
belts.
•Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and
using a seat belt properly.
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WARNING!
•Wearing a seat belt incorrectly is dangerous. Seat
belts are designed to go around the large bones of
your body. These are the strongest parts of your
body and can take the forces of a collision the
best.
•Wearing your belt in the wrong place could make
your injuries in a collision much worse. You
might suffer internal injuries, or you could even
slide out of part of the belt. Follow these instruc-
tions to wear your seat belt safely and to keep
your passengers safe, too.
•Two people should never be belted into a single
seat belt. People belted together can crash into one
another in an accident, hurting one another badly.
Never use a lap/shoulder belt or lap belt for more
than one person, no matter what their size.
Lap/Shoulder Belt Operating Instructions
1. Enter the vehicle and close the door. Sit back and
adjust the seat.
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WARNING!
•A belt that is buckled into the wrong buckle will not
protect you properly. The lap portion could ride too
high on your body, possibly causing internal injuries.
Always buckle your belt into the buckle nearest you.
•A belt that is too loose will not protect you as well. In a
sudden stop you could move too far forward, increasing
the possibility of injury. Wear your seat belt snugly.
•A belt that is worn under your arm is very dangerous.
Your body could strike the inside surfaces of the vehicle
in a collision, increasing head and neck injury. A belt
worn under the arm can cause internal injuries. Ribs
aren’t as strong as shoulder bones. Wear the belt over
your shoulder so that your strongest bones will take the
force in a collision.
•A shoulder belt placed behind you will not protect you
from injury during a collision. You are more likely to hit
your head in a collision if you do not wear your
shoulder belt. The lap and shoulder belt are meant to be
used together.
4. Position the lap belt across your thighs, below your
abdomen. To remove slack in the lap belt portion, pull up
on the shoulder belt. To loosen the lap belt if it is too tight,
tilt the latch plate and pull on the lap belt. A snug belt
reduces the risk of sliding under the belt in a collision.
Removing Slack From Belt
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WARNING!
•A lap belt worn too high can increase the risk of
internal injury in a collision. The belt forces won’t
be at the strong hip and pelvic bones, but across your
abdomen. Always wear the lap belt as low as pos-
sible and keep it snug.
•A twisted belt can’t do its job as well. In a collision
it could even cut into you. Be sure the belt is straight.
If you can’t straighten a belt in your vehicle, take it
to your dealer and have it fixed.
5. Position the shoulder belt on your chest so that it is
comfortable and not resting on your neck. The retractor
will withdraw any slack in the belt.6. To release the belt, push the red button on the buckle.
The belt will automatically retract to its stowed position.
If necessary, slide the latch plate down the webbing to
allow the belt to retract fully.
WARNING!
A frayed or torn belt could rip apart in a collision
and leave you with no protection. Inspect the belt
system periodically, checking for cuts, frays, or loose
parts. Damaged parts must be replaced immediately.
Do not disassemble or modify the system. Seat belt
assemblies must be replaced after a collision if they
have been damaged (bent retractor, torn webbing,
etc.).
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Rear Center Lap/Shoulder Belt Retractor Lock-Out
This feature is designed to lock the retractor whenever
the rear seat back is not fully latched. This prevents
someone from wearing the rear center lap/shoulder belt
when the rear seat back is not fully latched.
NOTE:
•If the rear center lap/shoulder belt can not be pulled
out, check that the rear seat back is fully latched.
•If the rear seat back is properly latched and the rear
center lap/shoulder belt still can not be pulled out, the
Automatic-Locking Retractor (ALR) system may be
activated. To reset this feature you must let all of the
belt webbing return into the retractor. You will not be
able to pull out more webbing until all of the webbing
has been returned back into the retractor.
WARNING!
The rear center lap/shoulder belt is equipped with a
lock-out feature to ensure that the rear seat back is in
the fully upright and locked position when occu-
pied. If the rear seat back is not fully upright and
locked and the rear center lap/shoulder belt can be
pulled out of the retractor, the vehicle should imme-
diately be taken to your dealer for service. Failure to
follow this warning could result in serious or fatal
injury.
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If the vehicle is equipped with side airbags, they are
located inside the driver and front passenger seats, and
their covers are also labeled SRS AIRBAG.WARNING!
•Do not put anything on or around the airbag
covers or attempt to manually open them. You
may damage the airbags and you could be injured
because the airbags are not there to protect you.
These protective covers for the airbag cushions are
designed to open only when the airbags are in-
flating.
•If your vehicle is equipped with side airbags, do
not use accessory seat covers or place objects
between you and the side airbags; the perfor-
mance could be adversely affected and/or objects
could be pushed into you, causing serious injury.
•If your vehicle is equipped with side airbags, do
not attach cup holders or any other objects on or
around the door. The inflating side airbag could
drive the object into occupants, causing serious
injury.Side Airbags
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2.All occupants should wear their lap and shoulder
belts properly.
3.The driver and front passenger seats should be
moved back as far as practical to allow the front airbags
room to inflate.
4.If your vehicle has side airbags, do not lean against
the door, airbags will inflate forcefully into the space
between you and the door.WARNING!
•Relying on the airbags alone could lead to more
severe injuries in a collision. The airbags work
with your seat belt to restrain you properly. In
some collisions the airbags won’t deploy at all.
Always wear your seat belts even though you
have airbags.
•Being too close to the steering wheel or instru-
ment panel during front airbag deployment could
cause serious injury. Airbags need room to inflate.
Sit back, comfortably extending your arms to
reach the steering wheel or instrument panel.
•If the vehicle has side airbags, they also need
room to inflate. Do not lean against the door. Sit
upright in the center of the seat.
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How The Airbag System Works
•
Thefrontairbag control module determines if a frontal
impact is severe enough to require the airbags to
inflate. The front control module will not detect side,
roll over, or rear collisions.
The front airbag control module also monitors the
readiness of the electronic parts of the system when-
ever the ignition switch is in the START or ON
positions. These include all of the items listed above
except the knee bolster, instrument panel and the
steering wheel and column. If the key is in the OFF
position, in the ACC position, or not in the ignition
switch, the airbags are not on and will not inflate.The front airbag control module also turns on
the AIRBAG light in the instrument panel for 6
to 8 seconds when the ignition switch is first
turned ON, then turns the light off. If the front or side
airbag control modules detect a malfunction in any
part of the system, the airbag light will turn on either
momentarily or continuously.
WARNING!
Ignoring the AIRBAG light in your instrument panel
could mean you won’t have the airbags to protect
you in a collision. If the light does not come on, stays
on after you start the vehicle, or if it comes on as you
drive, have the airbag system checked right away.
48 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
Deployed airbags and seat belt pretensioners cannot
protect you in another collision. Have the airbags
and seat belt pretensioners replaced by an autho-
rized dealer as soon as possible.
Maintaining Your Airbag System
WARNING!
•Modifications to any part of the airbag system
could cause it to fail when you need it. You could
be injured because the airbags are not there to
protect you. Do not modify the components or
wiring, including adding any kind of badges or
stickers to the steering wheel hub trim cover or
the upper right side of the instrument panel. Do
not modify the front bumper, vehicle body struc-
ture, or frame.
•You need proper knee impact protection in a
collision. Do not mount or locate any aftermarket
equipment on or behind the knee bolsters.
•It is dangerous to try to repair any part of the
airbag system yourself. Be sure to tell anyone who
works on your vehicle that it has airbags.
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