lock DODGE NITRO 2009 1.G Owner's Manual

WARNING!
Never leave children in a vehicle with the keys in the
ignition switch. Occupants, particularly unattended
children, can become entrapped by the windows
while operating the power window switches. Such
entrapment may result in serious injury or death.
Auto Down Feature
The driver’s and front passenger’s (if equipped for pas-
senger side) power window switches have an “Auto
Down” feature. Press the window switch past the first
detent, release, and the window will go down automati-
cally.
To open the window part way, press the window switch
to the first detent and release it when you want the
window to stop.To stop the window from going all the way down during
the auto-down operation, pull up on the switch briefly.
For vehicles not equipped with the Electronic Vehicle
Information Center (EVIC), the power window switches
will remain active for 45 seconds after the ignition switch
is turned to the LOCK position. Opening either front
door will cancel this feature.
For vehicles equipped with the EVIC, the power window
switches will remain active for up to 10 minutes after the
ignition switch is turned to the LOCK position. Opening
either front door will cancel this feature. The time is
programmable. Refer to “Delay Power Off to Accessories
Until Exit” under “Personal Settings (Customer Program-
mable Features)” under “Electronic Vehicle Information
Center (EVIC)” in Section 4.
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Auto Up Feature with Anti-Pinch Protection — If
Equipped
On some models, the driver’s power window switch has
an “Auto Up” feature. Pull the window switch up to the
second detent, release, and the window will go up
automatically.
To stop the window from going all the way up during the
auto-up operation, push down on the switch briefly.
To close the window part way, pull the window switch
up to the first detent and release when you want the
window to stop.
For vehicles not equipped with the Electronic Vehicle
Information Center (EVIC), the power window switches
will remain active for 45 seconds after the ignition switch
is turned to the LOCK position. Opening either front
door will cancel this feature.For vehicles equipped with the EVIC, the power window
switches will remain active for up to 10 minutes after the
ignition switch is turned to the LOCK position. Opening
either front door will cancel this feature. The time is
programmable. For details, refer to “Delay Power Off to
Accessories Until Exit” under “Personal Settings (Cus-
tomer Programmable Features)” under “Electronic Ve-
hicle Information Center (EVIC)” in Section 4.
NOTE:
•If the window runs into any obstacle during auto-
closure, it will reverse direction and then stop. Remove
the obstacle and use the window switch again to close
the window.
•Any impact due to rough road conditions may trigger
the auto-reverse function unexpectedly during auto-
closure. If this happens, pull the switch lightly to the
first detent and hold to close window manually.
34 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
There is no anti-pinch protection when the window
is almost closed. Be sure to clear all objects from the
window before closing.
Reset
At some point in time, it may be necessary to reactivate
the auto-up feature. To do so, perform the following
procedure:
1. Pull the window switch up to close window com-
pletely and continue to hold the switch up for an
additional two seconds after the window is closed.
2. Push the window switch down firmly to the second
detent to open the window completely and continue to
hold the switch down for an additional two seconds after
the window is fully open.
Window Lockout Switch
The window lockout switch on the driver’s door (below
the power window switches) allows you to disable the
window control on the other doors. To disable the
window controls on the other doors, press the window
LOCKOUT button. To enable the window controls, press
the window LOCKOUT button a second time.
Window Lockout Switch
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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 sunroof open, adjust the sunroof opening to minimize
the buffeting.
LIFTGATE
The vacuum fluorescent (VF) display located in the
odometer area displays the word “GATE” as an indica-
tion of when the liftgate is not completely closed. When
the vehicle is not moving, and the liftgate is not com-
pletely closed, the VF display will show the word
“GATE”. On EVIC equipped vehicles, “GATE AJAR” will
be displayed.If any other active warnings are present, they will be
shown in the VF display and will also continue to cycle.
If the vehicle is moving, three single chimes will sound if
the rear liftgate is open (one chime for each complete
display cycle). After this, the VF display will continue to
sequence only (no chimes).
If the trip/reset button is pressed while the VF warnings
are being displayed, the VF display will revert back to
only displaying the odometer/trip odometer mileage.
To open the liftgate, pull up (squeeze) on the handle and
lift. Manually unlocking the vehicle doors with the
plunger or a key in the lock cylinder will not unlock the
liftgate.
36 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
In a collision, you and your passengers can suffer
injuries, including fatalities, if you are not properly
buckled 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.
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 which 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. Someof 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 to reduce or prevent injuries.
Lap/Shoulder Belts
All seating positions in your vehicle have combination
lap/shoulder belts. The belt webbing retractor is de-
signed to lock during very sudden stops or collisions.
This feature allows the shoulder part of the belt to move
freely with you under normal conditions. But in a colli-
sion, the belt will lock and reduce the risk of you striking
the inside of the vehicle or being thrown out.
38 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

Adjustable Upper Shoulder Belt Anchorage
In the front seating positions, the shoulder belt can be
adjusted upward or downward to position the belt away
from your neck. Press the release button to release the
anchorage, and then move it up or down to the position
that fits you best.
NOTE:The adjustable upper shoulder belt anchorage is
equipped with an Easy Up feature. This feature allows
the shoulder belt anchorage to be adjusted in the upward
position without pressing the release button. To verify
the shoulder belt anchorage is latched, pull downward
on the shoulder belt anchorage until it is locked into
position.
As a guide, if you are shorter than average, you will
prefer a lower position, and if you are taller than average,
you’ll prefer a higher position.
Adjusting Upper Shoulder Belt
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Automatic Locking Mode — If Equipped
In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-
locked. The belt will still retract to remove any slack in
the shoulder belt.
When To Use The Automatic Locking Mode
Anytime a child safety seat is installed in the rear center
seating position. Children 12 years old and younger
should be properly restrained in the rear seat whenever
possible.
How To Use The Automatic Locking Mode
1. Buckle the combination lap and shoulder belt.
2. Grasp the shoulder portion and pull downward until
the entire belt is extracted.
3. Allow the belt to retract. As the belt retracts, you will
hear a clicking sound. This indicates the safety belt is
now in the automatic locking mode.
How to Disengage The Automatic Locking Mode
Disconnect the combination lap/shoulder belt and allow
it to retract completely to disengage the automatic lock-
ing mode and activate the vehicle sensitive (emergency)
locking mode.
Energy Management Feature
This vehicle has a safety belt system with an energy
management feature in the front seating positions to help
further reduce the risk of injury in the event of a head-on
collision.
This safety belt system has a retractor assembly that is
designed to release webbing in a controlled manner. This
feature is designed to help reduce the belt force acting on
the occupant’s chest.
44 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
•The belt and retractor assembly must be replaced
if the seat belt assembly “automatic locking retrac-
tor” feature or any other seat belt function is not
working properly when checked according to the
procedures in the Service Manual.
•Failure to replace the belt and retractor assembly
could increase the risk of injury in collisions.
Enhanced Seat Belt Use Reminder System
(BeltAlert)
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 (BeltAlert) 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. Once the warning is triggered, the
Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlert) will continue to
chime and flash the Seat Belt Reminder Light for 96 sec-
onds or until the driver’s or front passenger’s seat belt is
buckled. The Enhanced Warning System (BeltAlert) will
be reactivated 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).
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This vehicle is equipped with window bags to protect the
driver, front, and rear passengers sitting next to a win-
dow. They are located above the side windows. Their
covers are also labeled SRS/AIRBAG.NOTE:Airbag covers may not be obvious in the interior
trim, but they will open to allow airbag deployment.
WARNING!
•Do not put anything on or around the front airbag
covers or attempt to manually open them. You may
damage the airbags and you could be injured
because the airbags are no longer functional.
These protective covers for the airbag cushions are
designed to open only when the airbags are inflat-
ing.
•Do not stack luggage or other cargo up high
enough to block the location of the window bag.
The area where the window bag is located should
remain free from any obstructions.
(Continued)
Window Airbag Location
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•Occupant Classification System (OCS) — Front Pas-
senger Seat Only
Occupant Classification Module
Passenger Airbag Disable (PAD) Indicator Light
Weight Sensors
How The Airbag System Works
•
TheOccupant Restraint Control (ORC) modulede-
termines if a frontal, side, or rollover collision is severe
enough to require the airbags to inflate. The front
airbag inflators are designed to provide different rates
of airbag inflation from direction provided by the
ORC. The ORC may also modify the rate of inflation
based on the occupant size provided by the Occupant
Classification module. The ORC will detect roll over,
but not rear impacts.The ORC also monitors the readiness of the electronic
parts of the system whenever the ignition switch is in
the START or ON positions. These include all of the
items listed above except the instrument panel, and
the steering wheel and column. If the key is in the
LOCK position, in the ACC position, or not in the
ignition, the airbags are not on and will not inflate.
•Also, the ORC turns on the “Airbag Warn-
ing Light” and “PAD Indicator Light” 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
Passenger Airbag Disable (PAD) Indicator Lightin
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.
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