airbag FORD C MAX 2013 User Guide

WARNING:When possible, all children 12 years old and under
should be properly restrained in a rear seating position. Failure
to follow this could seriously increase the risk of injury or death.
WARNING:Safety belts and seats can become hot in a vehicle
that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn a
small child. Check seat covers and buckles before you place a child
anywhere near them.
WARNING:Front and rear seat occupants, including pregnant
women, should wear safety belts for optimum protection in an
accident.
All seating positions in this vehicle have lap and shoulder safety belts. All
occupants of the vehicle should always properly wear their safety belts,
even when an airbag supplemental restraint system is provided.
The safety belt system consists of:
•lap and shoulder safety belts
•shoulder safety belt with automatic locking mode (except driver safety
belt)
•height adjuster at the front outboard seating positions
•safety belt pretensioner at the front outboard seating positions
•belt tension sensor at the front outboard passenger seating position.
•safety belt warning light and chime. SeeSafety belt warning
light and indicator chimelater in this chapter.
•crash sensors and monitoring system with readiness
indicator. SeeCrash sensors and airbag indicatorin the
Supplemental Restraint Systemchapter.
The safety belt pretensioners are designed to activate in frontal,
near-frontal and side crashes, and in rollovers. The safety belt
pretensioners at the front seating positions are designed to tighten the
safety belts firmly against the occupant’s body when activated. This helps
increase the effectiveness of the safety belts. In frontal crashes, the
safety belt pretensioners can be activated alone or, if the crash is of
sufficient severity, together with the front airbags.
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PERSONAL SAFETY SYSTEM™
The Personal Safety System provides an improved overall level of frontal
crash protection to front seat occupants and is designed to help further
reduce the risk of airbag-related injuries. The system is able to analyze
different occupant conditions and crash severity before activating the
appropriate safety devices to help better protect a range of occupants in
a variety of frontal crash situations.
Your vehicle’s Personal Safety System consists of:
•Driver and passenger dual-stage airbag supplemental restraints.
•Front outboard safety belts with pretensioners, energy management
retractors (first row only), and safety belt usage sensors.
•Driver’s seat position sensor.
•Front passenger sensing system.
•Passenger airbag off and on indicator lamp.
•Front crash severity sensors.
•Restraints control module with impact and safing sensors.
•Restraint system warning light and backup tone.
•The electrical wiring for the airbags, crash sensor(s), safety belt
pretensioners, front safety belt usage sensors, driver seat position
sensor, front passenger sensing system, and indicator lights.
How Does the Personal Safety System Work?
The Personal Safety System can adapt the deployment strategy of your
vehicle’s safety devices according to crash severity and occupant
conditions. A collection of crash and occupant sensors provides
information to the restraints control module. During a crash, the
restraints control module may activate the safety belt pretensioners
and/or either one or both stages of the dual-stage airbag supplemental
restraints based on crash severity and occupant conditions.
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PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION
WARNING:Airbags do not inflate slowly or gently, and the risk
of injury from a deploying airbag is the greatest close to the trim
covering the airbag module.
WARNING:All occupants of your vehicle, including the driver,
should always properly wear their safety belts, even when an
airbag supplemental restraint system is provided.
WARNING:Always transport children 12 years old and under in
the back seat and always properly use appropriate child restraints.
WARNING:Never place your arm over the airbag module as a
deploying airbag can result in serious arm fractures or other
injuries.
WARNING:Airbags can kill or injure a child in a child seat.
NEVER place a rear-facing child seat in front of an active airbag.
If you must use a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move the
seat all the way back.
WARNING:Do not attempt to service, repair, or modify the
airbag supplemental restraint systems or its fuses. Contact your
authorized dealer as soon as possible.
WARNING:Several airbag system components get hot after
inflation. Do not touch them after inflation.
WARNING:If the airbag has deployed, the airbag will not
function again and must be replaced immediately. If the airbag is
not replaced, the unrepaired area will increase the risk of injury in a
crash.
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The airbags are a supplemental restraint system and are designed to
work with the safety belts to help protect the driver and right front
passenger from certain upper body injuries. Airbags do not inflate slowly;
there is a risk of injury from a deploying airbag.
Note:You will hear a loud bang and see a cloud of harmless powdery
residue if an airbag deploys. This is normal.
The airbags inflate and deflate rapidly upon activation. After airbag
deployment, it is normal to notice a smoke-like, powdery residue or smell
the burnt propellant. This may consist of cornstarch, talcum powder (to
lubricate the bag) or sodium compounds (for example, baking soda) that
result from the combustion process that inflates the airbag. Small amounts
of sodium hydroxide may be present which may irritate the skin and eyes,
but none of the residue is toxic. While the system is designed to help
reduce serious injuries, contact with a deploying airbag may also cause
abrasions or swelling. Temporary hearing loss is also a possibility as a result
of the noise associated with a deploying airbag. Because airbags must
inflate rapidly and with considerable force, there is the risk of death or
serious injuries, such as fractures, facial and eye injuries or internal
injuries, particularly to occupants who are not properly restrained or are
otherwise out of position at the time of airbag deployment. Thus, it is
extremely important that occupants be properly restrained as far away
from the airbag module as possible while maintaining vehicle control.
Routine maintenance of the airbags is not required.
SOS POST-CRASH ALERT SYSTEM™
The system flashes the turn signal lamps and sounds the horn
(intermittently) in the event of a serious impact that deploys an airbag
equipped on your vehicle, such as front, side, side curtain or Safety
Canopy®.
The horn and lamps will turn off when:
•the hazard control button is pressed
•the panic button (if equipped) is pressed on the remote entry
transmitter, or
•your vehicle runs out of power.
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DRIVER AND PASSENGER AIRBAGS
WARNING:Never place your arm or any objects over an airbag
module. Placing your arm over a deploying airbag can result in
serious arm fractures or other injuries. Objects placed on or over the
airbag inflation area may cause those objects to be propelled by the
airbag into your face and torso causing serious injury.
WARNING:Airbags can kill or injure a child in a child seat.
Never place a rear-facing child seat in front of an active airbag.
If you must use a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move the
seat all the way back.
The driver and front passenger
airbags will deploy during significant
frontal and near-frontal crashes.
The driver and passenger front airbag system consists of:
•driver and passenger airbag modules
•crash sensors and monitoring system with readiness
indicator. SeeCrash Sensors and Airbag Indicatorlater in
this chapter.
•front passenger sensing system
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Proper Driver and Front Passenger Seating Adjustment
WARNING:The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
recommends a minimum distance of at least 10 inches
(25 centimeters) between an occupant’s chest and the driver airbag
module.
To properly position yourself away from the airbag:
•Move your seat to the rear as far as you can while still reaching the
pedals comfortably.
•Recline the seat slightly (one or two degrees) from the upright
position.
After all occupants have adjusted their seats and put on safety belts,
it is very important that they continue to sit properly. Properly seated
occupants sit upright, lean against the seat back, and center themselves
on the seat cushion, with their feet comfortably extended on the floor.
Sitting improperly can increase the chance of injury in a crash event.
For example, if an occupant slouches, lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward or sideways, or puts one or both feet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is greatly increased.
Children and Airbags
WARNING:Airbags can kill or injure a child in a child seat.
Never place a rear-facing child seat in front of an active airbag.
If you must use a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move the
seat all the way back.
Children must always be properly
restrained. Accident statistics
suggest that children are safer when
properly restrained in the rear
seating positions than in the front
seating position. Failure to follow
these instructions may increase the
risk of injury in a crash.
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FRONT PASSENGER SENSING SYSTEM
WARNING:Even with Advanced Restraints Systems, children 12
and under should be properly restrained in a rear seating position.
WARNING:Sitting improperly out of position or with the seat
back reclined too far can take off weight from the seat cushion
and affect the decision of the front passenger sensing system, resulting
in serious injury or death in a crash.
Always sit upright against your seatback, with your feet on the floor.
WARNING:To reduce the risk of possible serious injury:
Do not stow objects in seat back map pocket or hang objects off
seat back if a child is in the front passenger seat.
Do not place objects underneath the front passenger seat or between
the seat and the center console.
Check the passenger airbag off or pass airbag off indicator lamp for
proper airbag status.
Failure to follow these instructions may interfere with the passenger
seat sensing system.
WARNING:Any alteration or modification to the front passenger
seat may affect the performance of the front passenger sensing
system.
This system works with sensors that are part of the front passenger’s
seat and safety belt to detect the presence of a properly-seated occupant
and determine if the front passenger’s frontal airbag should be enabled
(may inflate) or not.
The front passenger sensing system
uses a pass airbag off indicator
which will illuminate and stay lit to
remind you that the front passenger
frontal airbag is disabled.
The indicator lamp is located under the climate controls. The indicator
lamp will illuminate for a short period of time when the ignition is turned
to the on position to confirm it is functional.
PASS AIR
BAG
OFF
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Note:When the passenger airbag off light is illuminated, the passenger
(seat mounted) side airbag may be disabled to avoid the risk of airbag
deployment injuries.
If the child restraint has been installed and the indicator lamp is not lit,
then turn the vehicle off, remove the child restraint from the vehicle
and reinstall the restraint following the child restraint manufacturer’s
instructions.
If a person of adult size is sitting in the front passenger’s seat, but the
pass airbag off indicator lamp is lit, it is possible that the person is not
sitting properly in the seat. If this happens:
•Turn the vehicle off and ask the person to place the seat back in the
full upright position.
•Have the person sit upright in the seat, centered on the seat cushion,
with the person’s legs comfortably extended.
•Restart the vehicle and have the person remain in this position for
about two minutes. This will allow the system to detect that person
and enable the passenger’s frontal airbag.
•If the indicator lamp remains lit even after this, the person should be
advised to ride in the rear seat.
The pass airbag off lamp will operate according to the table below.
OccupantPass Airbag Off
Indicator LampPassenger Airbag
Empty seat Unlit Disabled
Small child Lit Disabled
Adult Unlit Enabled
The front passenger sensing system may detect small or medium objects
placed on the seat cushion. For most objects that are in the front
passenger seat, the passenger airbag will be disabled. Even though the
passenger airbag is disabled, the pass airbag off lamp may or may not be
illuminated.
If you think that the status of the passenger airbag off indicator lamp is
incorrect, check for the following:
•Objects lodged underneath the seat
•Objects between the seat cushion and the center console
•Objects hanging off the seat back
•Objects stowed in the seat back map pocket
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•Objects placed on the occupant’s lap
•Cargo interference with the seat
•Other passengers pushing or pulling on the seat
•Rear passenger feet and knees resting or pushing on the seat
The conditions listed above may cause the weight of a properly seated
occupant to be incorrectly interpreted by the passenger sensing system.
The person in the front passenger seat may appear heavier or lighter due
to the conditions described in the list above.
To know if the front passenger sensing system is operating
properly, seeCrash Sensors and Airbag Indicatorlater in this
chapter.
If the airbag readiness lamp is lit, do the following:
The driver or adult passengers should check for any objects that may be
lodged underneath the front passenger seat or cargo interfering with the
seat.
If objects are lodged or cargo is interfering with the seat; please take the
following steps to remove the obstruction:
•Pull the vehicle over.
•Turn the vehicle off.
•Driver or adult passengers should check for any objects lodged
underneath the front passenger seat or cargo interfering with the seat.
•Remove the obstruction(s) (if found).
•Restart the vehicle.
•Wait at least two minutes and verify that the airbag readiness lamp is
no longer illuminated.
•If the airbag readiness lamp remains illuminated, this may or may not
be a problem due to the front passenger sensing system.
Do not attempt to repair or service the system. Take your vehicle
immediately to an authorized dealer.
If it is necessary to modify an advanced front airbag system to
accommodate a person with disabilities, contact the Ford Customer
Relationship Center at the phone number shown in theCustomer
Assistancesection of this owner’s manual.
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KNEE AIRBAG
A driver’s knee airbag is located under or within the instrument panel.
During a crash, the restraints control module may activate the driver’s
knee airbag based on crash severity and occupant conditions. Under
certain crash and occupant conditions, the driver’s knee airbag may
deploy but the driver’s front airbag may not activate. As with front and
side airbags, it is important to be properly seated and restrained to
reduce the risk of death or serious injury.
Note:The driver’s knee airbag has a lower deployment threshold than
the front airbags. During certain crashes, it is possible that the driver’s
knee airbag and safety belt pretensioner will deploy, but not the driver’s
front airbag.
To know if the knee airbag is operating properly, seeCrash
Sensors and Airbag Indicatorin this chapter.
SIDE AIRBAGS
WARNING:Do not place objects or mount equipment on or near
the airbag cover, on the side of the seat backs (of the front seats),
or in front seat areas that may come into contact with a deploying airbag.
Failure to follow these instructions may increase the risk of personal
injury in the event of a crash.
WARNING:Do not use accessory seat covers. The use of
accessory seat covers may prevent the deployment of the side
airbags and increase the risk of injury in an accident.
WARNING:Do not lean your head on the door. The side airbag
could injure you as it deploys from the side of the seat back.
WARNING:Do not attempt to service, repair, or modify the
airbag, its fuses or the seat cover on a seat containing an airbag,
as you could be seriously injured or killed. Contact your authorized
dealer as soon as possible.
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