HONDA PRELUDE 1998 User Guide

Protecting Adults

Introduction
The following pages provide instructions on how to properly
protect the driver and other adult
occupants.

These instructions also apply to children who have outgrown child
seats and are large enough to wear
lap/shoulder belts. (See page 35 for
important additional guidelines on
how to properly protect larger children.) 1. Close and Lock the Doors
After everyone has entered the vehicle, be sure the doors are closed
and locked.

Your vehicle has a doormonitor light on the
instrument panel to indicate when a specific door is not tightly closed. For safety, locking the doors reduces
the chance of a passenger, especially
a child, opening a door while the
vehicle is moving and accidentally falling out. It also reduces the
chance of someone being thrown outof the vehicle during a crash.
For security, locked doors can
prevent an outsider from
unexpectedly opening a door when
you come to a stop.
See page 72 for how to lock the

doors.

Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

2. Adjust the Front Seats
Any driver who sits too close to the steering wheel is at risk of being
seriously injured or killed by striking
the steering wheel or being struck
by an inflating airbag during a crash. To reduce the chance of injury, wear
your seat belt properly, sit upright
with your back against the seat, andmove the seat as far back as possible
from the steering wheel while stillmaintaining full control of the car.
Also make sure your front seat passenger moves their seat as far to
the rear as possible.
Most shorter drivers can get far
enough away from the steering
wheel and still reach the pedals. However, if you are concerned aboutsitting too close, we recommend that
you investigate whether some type of adaptive equipment may help.
Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it forward and back to make sure the seat is locked in position.
See page 75 for how to adjust the
front seats.

Driver and Passenger Safety

Sitting too close to an airbag
can result in serious injury or
death if the airbags inflate.
Always sit as far back from the airbags as possible.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

3. Adjust the Seat-Backs
Adjust the driver's seat-back to a comfortable, upright position,
leaving ample space between your chest and the airbag cover in the
center of the steering wheel. If you sit too close to the steering wheel,
you could be injured if the airbag inflates. A front passenger should also adjust
the seat-back to an upright position,
as far from the dashboard as
possible. If the passenger sits too
close to the dashboard, they could be
injured if the airbag inflates.
Reclining a seat-back so that the
shoulder part of the belt no longer
rests against an occupant's chest
reduces the protective capability of
the belt. It also increases the chance of sliding under the belt and being
seriously injured in a crash. The
farther a seat-back is reclined, the
greater the risk of injury. See page 75 for how to adjust seat-

backs.

Driver and Passenger Safety
Reclining the seat-back too far

can result in serious injury or

death in a crash.
Adjust the seat-back to an
upright position and sit well

back in the seat.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults
4. Adjust the Head Restraints
Before driving, make sure everyone
with an adjustable head restraint has
properly positioned the head
restraint. The restraint should be
positioned so the back of the occupant's head rests against the
center of the restraint. A taller
person should adjust the restraint as
high as possible. Properly adjusted head restraints
will help protect you from whiplash and other crash injuries.
See page 77 for how to adjust the
head restraints.

Driver and Passenger Safety

Improperly positioning head

restraints reduces their
effectiveness and you can be
seriously injured in a crash.
Make sure head restraints are
in place and positioned properly
before driving.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

5. Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
Insert the latch plate into the buckle,
then tug on the belt to make sure the
belt is securely latched. Also check
that the belt is not twisted, because a
twisted belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash.
Position the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across your hips,
then pull up on the shoulder part of
the belt so the lap part fits snugly.
This lets your strong pelvic bones take the force of a crash and reduces
the chance of internal injuries. If necessary, pull up on the belt again
to remove any slack from the shoulder part, then check that the
belt rests across the center of your chest and over your shoulder. Thisspreads the forces of a crash over
the strongest bones in your upper
body.
Never place the shoulder portion of a
lap/shoulder belt under your arm or
behind your back. This could cause
very serious injuries in a crash.
Driver and Passenger Safety Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned before
driving.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

If your seat belt does not seem to
work as it should, it may not protect you in a crash. Anyone using aninoperative seat belt can be seriously
injured or killed. No one should sit in
a seat with an inoperative seat belt.

Have your Honda dealer check the
belt as soon as possible. See page 40 for additional
information about your seat belt system and how to take care of your

belts.
6. Adjust the Steering Wheel
Adjust the steering wheel, if needed,
so that the wheel points toward your
chest, not toward your face.
Pointing the steering wheel toward
your face decreases the protective capability of the driver's airbag.
See page 64 for how to adjust the
steering wheel.
Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults
7. Maintain a Proper Sitting Position
After all occupants have adjusted their seats and put on seat belts, it is
very important that they continue to sit upright, with their bodies well
back in their seats and both feet on
the floor, until the car is parked and
the engine is off.
Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward, or puts one or both feet up, their chance of
injury during a crash is greatly

increased.
In addition, if an occupant is out of
position in the front seat, they can be seriously or fatally injured by
striking interior parts of the vehicle,
or by being struck by an inflating

airbag.

Remember, to get the best
protection from your vehicle's airbags and other safety features,
you must sit properly and wear your seat belt properly.

Driver and Passenger Safety
Sitting improperly or out of
position can result in serious
injury or death in a crash.
Always sit upright, well back in
the seat, with your feet on the

floor.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

Advice for Pregnant Women
Because protecting the mother is the
best way to protect her unborn child,
a pregnant woman should always
wear a seat belt whenever she drives or rides in a car.
Remember to keep the lap portion of
the belt as low as possible across
your hips. Pregnant women should also sit as
far back as possible from the steering wheel or dashboard. This
will reduce the risk of injuries to both the mother and her unborn
child that can be caused by a crash
or an inflating airbag.
Each time you have a checkup, ask
your doctor if it's okay for you to drive. Additional Safety Precautions

Two people should never use the

same seat belt. If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a

crash.
Do not put any accessories on seat

belts. Devices intended to improve
occupant comfort, or reposition
the shoulder part of a seat belt,
can severely compromise the
protective capability of seat belts and increase the chance of serious
injury in a crash.

CONTINUED

Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

Do not place hard or sharp objects
between yourself and an airbag.

Carrying hard or sharp objects on
your lap, or driving with a pipe or other sharp object in your mouth,
can result in injuries if your
airbags inflate.
Keep your hands and arms away
from the airbag covers. If your

hands or arms are close to the SRS
covers in the center of the
steering wheel and on top of the
dashboard, they could be injured if
the airbags inflate.
Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Children
Children depend on adults to protect
them. However, despite their best intentions, many parents and other
adults do not know how to properly
protect young passengers.
So if you have children, or if you ever
need to drive with a grandchild or
other children in your vehicle, besure to read this section. All Children Must Be Restrained
Each year, many children are injuredor killed in vehicle crashes because
they are either unrestrained or not
properly restrained. In fact, vehicle
accidents are the number one cause of death of children ages 12 and
under.
To reduce the number of child deaths and injuries, every state andCanadian province requires that
infants and children be restrained
whenever they ride in a vehicle.

Any child who is too small to wear a
seat belt should be properly

restrained in a child seat. (See page
23.)

Larger children should always be

restrained with a seat belt. (See page
35.)

Driver and Passenger Safety

Children who are unrestrained
or improperly restrained can be
seriously injured or killed in a
crash.
Any child too small for a seat belt should be properly restrained in a child seat.
Larger children should be
properly restrained with a seat

belt.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t