warning CHRYSLER PT CRUISER 2008 1.G Owner's Manual

ENHANCED SEAT BELT REMINDER SYSTEM
(BELTALERTT)
If the driver's or front passenger's seat belt has not been
buckled within 60 seconds of starting the vehicle and if
the vehicle speed is greater than 5 mph (8 km/h), the
Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlertt) will alert the
driver or front passenger to buckle their seat belt. The
driver should also instruct all other occupants to buckle
their seat belts. If the driver unbuckles the seat belt while
the vehicle is in motion an immediate chime will be heard
and, the Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlertt) will
continue to chime and flash the Seat Belt Warning Light
for 96 seconds or until the driver's seat belt is buckled.
The Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlertt) will be reac-
tivated if the driver's or front passenger's seat belt is
unbuckled for more than 10 seconds and the vehicle
speed is greater than 5 mph (8 km/h).NOTE:
²The Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlertt) can be
enabled or disabled by your authorized dealer.
²DaimlerChrysler does not recommend deactivating
the Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlertt).
If the Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlertt) is deacti-
vated, the Seat Belt Warning Light will continue to
illuminate while the driver seat belt remains unfastened.
SEAT BELTS AND PREGNANT WOMEN
We recommend that pregnant women use the seat belts
throughout their pregnancy. Keeping the mother safe is
the best way to keep the baby safe.
Pregnant women should wear the lap part of the belt
across the thighs and as snug across the hips as possible.
Keep the belt low so that it does not come across the
abdomen. That way the strong bones of the hips will take
the force if there is a collision.
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NOTE:Airbag covers may not be obvious in the interior
trim; but they will open to allow airbag deployment.
WARNING!
²Do not drill, cut or tamper with the knee impact
blocker panels in any way.
²Do not mount any accessories to the knee blocker
panel such as alarm lights, stereos, citizens band
radios etc.
56 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
²Do 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 inflat-
ing.
²If your vehicle is equipped with Head/Thorax
airbags, do not use accessory seat covers or place
objects between you and the airbags; the perfor-
mance could be adversely affected and/or objects
could be pushed into you, causing serious injury.
Airbags inflate in moderate to high speed impacts. Along
with seat belts and pretensioners, front airbags work with
the instrument panel knee impact blockers to provideimproved protection for the driver and front passenger.
Head/Thorax side airbags also work with seat belts to
improve occupant protection.
The seat belts are designed to protect you in many types
of collisions. The front airbags deploy in moderate to
severe frontal collisions. If your vehicle is equipped, the
Head/Thorax airbag on the crash side of the vehicle is
triggered in moderate to severe side collisions. In certain
types of collisions, both the front seat Head/Thorax
airbags may be triggered. But even in collisions where
the airbags work, you need to wear the seat belts to keep
you in the right position for the airbags to protect you
properly.
NOTE:The passenger front airbag may not deploy even
when the driver front airbag has if the Occupant Classi-
fication System (refer to9Occupant Classification System9
in this section) has determined the passenger seat is
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WARNING!
²Relying 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.
²Being too close to the steering wheel or instrument
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.
²Seat airbags also need room to inflate. Do not lean
against the door. Sit upright in the center of the
seat.The front airbag system consists of the following:
²Occupant Restraint Controller
²Side Remote Acceleration Sensors (If equipped)
²Airbag Warning Light
²Driver and Front Passenger Airbag
²Front Seat Mounted Head/Thorax Airbags (if
equipped)
²Steering Wheel and Column
²Instrument Panel
²Driver and Front Passenger Knee Impact Blockers
²Front Acceleration Sensors
²Driver and Front Passenger Seat Belt Pretensioners
²Passenger Airbag Disable (PAD) Indicator Light
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The Head/Thorax airbag system (if equipped) consists
of the following:
²AIRBAG Readiness Light (shared with the front airbag
system)
²Front SeatÐ side mounted Head/Thorax Airbags Ð if
equipped
²Airbag Control Module (shared with the front airbag
system)
²Side impact sensors
How The Airbag System Works
²
TheOccupant Restraint Controller (ORC)determines
if a frontal collision is severe enough to require the
airbags to inflate. The front airbag inflators are de-
signed to provide different rates of airbag inflation
from direction provided by the ORC. The ORC mayalso modify the rate of inflation based on the occupant
size provided by the Occupant Classification Module.
The ORC will not detect roll over.
The ORC also monitors the readiness of the electronic
parts of the system whenever the ignition switch is in
the START or RUN positions. These include all of the
items listed above except the steering wheel and
column, and knee blocker panels. If the key is in the
OFF position, in the ACC position, or not in the
ignition, the airbags are not on and will not inflate.
During a moderate-to-severe rear impact the ORC may
deploy the seat belt pretensioners alone.
Also, the ORC turns on the AIRBAG warning
light and PAD indicator light in the instrument
panel for six to eight seconds for a self-check
when the ignition is first turned on. After the
self-check, the AIRBAG warning light will turn off. The
PAD indicator light will function normally (Refer to
60 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

9Passenger Airbag Disable (PAD) Indicator Light9in this
section). If the ORC detects a malfunction in any part of
the system, it turns on the AIRBAG warning light either
momentarily or continuously. A single chime will sound
if the light comes on again after initial start up.
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.
²When the front airbag control module detects a colli-
sion requiring the front airbags, it signals the inflator
units. A large quantity of nontoxic gas is generated to
inflate the front airbags. The front airbag covers sepa-
rate and fold out of the way as the front airbags inflateto their full size. The front airbags fully inflate in about
50 milliseconds. This is only about half of the time it
takes you to blink your eyes. The front airbags then
quickly deflate while helping to restrain the driver and
front passenger. The driver's and passenger's front
airbag gas is vented through holes in the sides of the
airbag. In this way the front airbags do not interfere
with your control of the vehicle.
²ThePassenger Airbag Disable (PAD) Indicator Light
(an amber light located in the center of the instrument
panel) tells the driver and front passenger when the
front passenger airbag is turned off. The PAD Indica-
tor lamp illuminates the words9PASS AIRBAG OFF9
to show that the front passenger airbag will not inflate
during a collision requiring airbags. When the right
front passenger seat is empty or when very light
objects are placed on the seat, the passenger airbag
will not inflate even though the PAD indicator lamp is
not illuminated.
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²The PAD indictor light should not be illu-
minated when an adult passenger is prop-
erly seated in the front passenger seat. In
this case, the airbag is ready to be inflated if
a collision requiring an airbag occurs.
For all other occupants, the PAD indicator light will be
illuminated indicating that the front passenger airbag
is turned off and will not inflate.NOTE:Even though this vehicle is equipped with an
occupant classification system, children 12 years and
under should always ride buckled up in a rear seat in an
appropriate child restraint (see section on child re-
straints).
WARNING!
Never place a rear facing infant seat in front of an
airbag. A deploying passenger airbag can cause death
or serious injury to a child in a rear facing infant seat.
Passenger Airbag Disabled Light
62 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

Passenger Airbag Disable (PAD) System
Front Passenger Indicator Light Airbag Status
Adult OFF ON
Child ON OFF
Grocery Bags,
Heavy Briefcases
and Other Rela-
tively Light Ob-
jectsON OFF
Empty or Very
Small ObjectsOFF* OFF
* Since the system senses weight, some small objects
will turn the PAD Indicator Light on.
Drivers and adult passengers should verify that the PAD
Indicator Light is not illuminated when an adult is riding
in the front passenger seat. If an adult occupant's weight
is transferred to another part of the vehicle (like the door
or instrument panel), the weight sensors in the seat maynot properly classify the occupant. Objects lodged under
the seat or between the seat and the center console can
prevent the occupant's weight from being measured
properly and may result in the occupant being improp-
erly classified. Ensure that the front passenger seat back
does not touch anything placed on the second row of
seats because this can also affect occupant classification.
Also, if you fold down the seats in the second row check
to be sure they don't touch the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger seat is damaged in any way, it
should only be serviced by an authorized dealer. If the
seat is removed (or even if the seat attachment bolts are
loosened or tightened in any way), take the vehicle to an
authorized dealer.
If there is a fault present in the Airbag Warning Light (a
red light located in the center of the instrument cluster
directly in front of the driver) will be turned on. This
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indicates that you should take the vehicle to an autho-
rized dealer. The Airbag Warning Light is turned on
whenever there is fault that can affect the operation of the
airbag system. If there is a fault present in the PAD
Indicator Light the Airbag Warning Light remains illu-
minated to show that the passenger airbag is turned off
until the fault is cleared. If an object is lodged under the
seat and interferes with operation of the weight sensors,
a fault will occur which turns on both the PAD Indicator
Light and the Airbag Warning Light. Once the lodged
object is removed, the fault will be automatically cleared
after a short period of time.
²TheDriver and Passenger Airbag/Inflator Unitsare
located in the center of the steering wheel and the right
side of the instrument panel. When the ORC detects a
collision requiring the airbags, it signals the inflator
units. A large quantity of nontoxic gas is generated to
inflate the front airbags. Different airbag inflation ratesmay be possible based on collision severity and occu-
pant size. The steering wheel hub trim cover and the
upper right side of the instrument panel separate and
fold out of the way as the bags inflate to their full size.
The bags fully inflate in about 50 - 70 milliseconds.
This is about half of the time it takes to blink your eyes.
The bags then quickly deflate while helping to restrain
the driver and front passenger. The driver's front
airbag gas is vented through vent holes in the sides of
the airbag. The passenger's front airbag gas is vented
through vent holes in the sides of the airbag. In this
way the airbags do not interfere with your control of
the vehicle.
²TheOccupant Classification Module (OCM)is lo-
cated beneath the front passenger seat. The OCM
classifies the occupant into categories based on the
measurements made by the seat weight sensors. The
OCM communicates with the ORC. The ORC uses the
occupant category to determine whether the front
64 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

²Do not replace the seat cover with an aftermarket seat
cover.
²Do not add a secondary seat cover other than those
approved by DaimlerChrysler/Mopart.
²At no time should any supplemental restraint system
(SRS) component or SRS related component or fas-
tener be modified or replaced with any part except
those which are approved by DaimlerChrysler/
Mopart.
WARNING!
Unapproved modifications or service procedures to
the front passenger seat assembly, its related compo-
nents, or seat cover may inadvertently change the
airbag deployment in case of a frontal crash. This
could result in death or serious injury to the front
seat passenger if the vehicle is involved in an
accident.
If A Deployment Occurs
The airbag systems are designed to deploy when the
airbag control modules detect a moderate-to-severe col-
lision, to help restrain the driver and front passenger, and
then immediately deflate.
66 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE