belt LEXUS LS430 2006 User Guide

36
1-3. Adjustable components
Seat belt pretensioners
The pretensioner helps the seat
belt to quickly restrain the occu-
pant by retracting the seat belt
when the v

ehicle is subjected to
certain types of severe frontal colli -
sion.
The pretensioner may not activate
in the event of a minor frontal
impact, a side impact and a rear
impact.
■Emergency locking retractor (ELR)
The retractor will lock the belt during a sudd e
n stop or on impact. It may also lock if
you lean forward too quickly. A slow, easy motion will allow the belt to extend, and
you can move around fully.
■Automatic locking retractor (ALR)
When a passenger’s shoulder belt is completely extended and then retracted even
sl

ightly the belt is locked in that position and cannot be extended. This feature is
used to hold the CRS firmly. To free the belt again, fully retract the belt and then pull
the belt out once more. ( P.77)

37
1-3. Adjustable components
1
Before driving
■Pregnant women
■People suffering illness
Obtain medical advice and wear the seat bel
t in the proper way.
■Child seat belt usage
●Use a child restraint system appropriately for the child, until the child becomes
large enough to properly wear the vehicle’s seat belt. ( P.34 )
●When the child becomes large enough to properly wear the vehicle’s seat belt,
follow the instructions on P. 34 regarding seat belt usage.
■Replacing the belt after activation of the pretensioner
The seat belts cannot be used if a pretensi oner h
as activated. After an accident, have
your Lexus dealer inspect the pretensioners and replace them, if necessary.
Obtain medical advice and wear the seat
belt in the proper way. ( P. 3 4 )
Women who are pregnant should position
the lap belt as low as possible over the hips
in the same manner as other occupants.
Extend the shoulder belt completely over
the shoulder and position the belt across
the chest. Avoid belt contact over the
rounding of the abdominal area.
If the seat belt is not worn properly, not only
a pregnant woman, but also the fetus could
suffer death or serious injury as a result of
sudden braking or a collision

38
1-3. Adjustable components
■Seat belt extender
CAUTION
■Wearing a seat belt
Observe the following precautions to reduce the risk of injury in the event of sud-
den braking or an accident. Failing to do
so may cause death or serious injury.
• Ensure that all passengers wear a seat belt.
• Always wear a seat belt.
• Each seat belt should be used by one person only. Do not use the seat belt
for mor
e than one person at the same time, including children.
• Children should be seated in the rear seat and
always use a seat belt and/or
an appropriate child restraint system.
• Do not recline the seat any more than necessary to achieve a proper seat -
ing position. The seat belt is most ef fe
ctive when the occupants are sitting
up straight and well back in the seats.
• Do not wear the shoulder belt under your arm.
• Always wear your seat belt low and snug across your hips.
If your seat belts cannot be fastened
securely because they are not long
enough, a personalized seat belt extender
is available from your Lexus dealer free of
charge.

39
1-3. Adjustable components
1
Before driving
CAUTION
■Seat belt damage and wear
●Do not damage the seat belts by allowing the belt, plate or buckle to be jammed
in the door.
●Do not use a damaged seat belt until it is replaced. Damaged seat belts cannot
protect an occupant from injury.
●Ensure that the belt and tab are locked and the belt is not twisted. If the seat belt
does not function correctly, immediately contact your Lexus dealer.
●Replace the seat assembly, including the belts, if your vehicle has been involved in
a serious accident, even if there is no obvious damage.
●Do not attempt to install, remove, modify , disassemble or dispose of a seat belt.
Have any necessary repairs carried out by your Lexus dealer. Inappropriate han-
dling of the pretensioner may cause it to activate or operate improperly and may
caus
e death or serious injury.
■Using seat belt extender
●Do not wear the seat belt extender, if you can fasten the seat belt without the
extender.
●Do not use the seat belt extender when installing a child restraint system, because
the belt will not securely hold the child restraint system, increasing the risk of
death or injury in the event of a collision.
●The personalized extender may not be safe on another vehicle, when used by
another person, or at a different seating position other than the one originally
intended.
NOTICE
■When using a seat belt extender
When releasing the seat belt, press on the buckle release button on the extender,
not

on the seat belt. 
This helps prevent damage to the vehi cle
interior and the extender itself.

58
1-7. Safety information
Correct driving posture
Drive with good posture as follows:
Sit upright and well back in the
seat.
Adjust the position of the seat
forward or backward to ensure
the pedals can be r
eached and
easily depressed to the extent
required. ( P.
2 2 )
Adjust the seatback so that the
controls are easily operable.
Adjust the tilt and telescopic
positions of the steering wheel
do
wnward so the airbag is fac -
ing your chest. ( P.
4 0 )
Lock the head restraint in place
with the center of the head
r
estraint closest to the top of
your ears. ( P
.31)
Wear the seat belt correctly. 
( P.
3 4 )
1
2
3
4
5
6

59
1-7. Safety information
1
Before driving
CAUTION
■When driving:
●Do not adjust the position of the driver’s seat while driving. 
Doing so could cause the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
●Do not place a cushion between the driv er or passenger and the seat back. 
A cushion may prevent correct posture from being achieved and reduce the
ef
fect of the seat belt and head restraint, increasing the risk of injury to the driver
or passenger.
●Do not place anything under the front seats. 
Objects placed under the front seats may become jammed in the seat tracks and
sto
p the seat from locking in place. This may lead to an accident. The adjustment
mechanism may also be damaged.
■Adjusting the seat position:
●Do not recline the seat more than necessary when the vehicle is in motion, to
reduce the risk of sliding under the lap belt. 
If the seat is too reclined during an accident, the lap belt may slide past the hips
and
apply restraint forces directly to th e abdomen or your neck may contact the
shoulder belt, increasing the risk of death or serious injury.
●Take care when adjusting the seat positi on, to ensure that other passengers are
not injured by the moving seat.
●Do not put your hands under the seat or ne ar the moving parts, to avoid injury to
hands or fingers. 
Fingers or hands may become ja
mmed in the seat mechanism.

60
1-7. Safety information
SRS airbags
The SRS airbags inflate when the vehicle is subjected to certain types of
severe impacts that may cause significant injury to the occupants. They
work together with the seat belts, to help reduce the risk of death or serious
injury.
Front airbags
Driver airbag/front passenger airbag 
Can help protect the head and chest of the driver and front passenger
fr
om impact by interior components.
Knee airbags 
Can help provide driver and front passenger protection.
Side and curtain shield airbags
Side airbags 
Can help protect the torso of the fr
ont seat occupants.
Curtain shield airbags 
Can help protect primarily the head of ou
tboard occupants.

61
1-7. Safety information
1
Before driving
Airbag system components
The main SRS airbag system components are shown above. The SRS air-
bag system is controlled by the airb ag sensor as
sembly. The airbag sen-
sor assembly consists of a safing sensor and airbag sensor.
In certain types of severe frontal or side impacts, the SRS airbag s
ystem
triggers the airbag inflators. A chemica l reaction in the inflators quickly
fills the airbags with non-toxic gas to help restrain the motion of the occu -
pants. Front airbag sensors
Front passenger’s seat belt
buckle switch
Occupant detection sensor
Side and curtain shield airbag
sensors
Knee airbags
Front passenger airbag
Side airbags
Curtain shield airbag sensors
Curtain shield airbags
Driver airbag
Driver’s seat position sensor
Driver’s seat belt buckle switch
SRS warning light
Airbag sensor assembly
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14

62
1-7. Safety information
■If the SRS airbags deploy (inflate)
●Bruising and slight abrasions may result from contact with a deploying (inflating)
SRS airbag.
●A loud noise and white powder will be emitted.
●Parts of the airbag module (steering whee l hub, airbag cover and inflator), as
well as the front seats, apart from the front pillar and roof side rail may be hot for
several minutes, and the airbags themselves will be hot.
●The front windshield may crack.
■Operating conditions (front airbags)
●The SRS front airbags will deploy if the severity of the frontal impact is above the
designed threshold level, comparable to an approximate 15 mph (25 km/h) col -
lision, when the vehicle imp acts
straight into a fixed barrier that does not move
or deform.
However, this threshold velocity will be considerably higher, if the vehicle strikes
a

n object, such as a parked vehicle or sign pole, which can move or deform on
impact, or if the vehicle is involved in an underride collision (e.g., a collision in
which the front of the vehicle “underrides”, or goes under, the bed of a truck, etc.).
●It is possible that in some collisions where the forward deceleration of the vehi -
cle is very close to the designed thresh ol
d level, the SRS front airbags and the
seat belt pretensioners ma y not activate together.
●The SRS front passenger airbag will not activate, if there is no passenger sitting
in the front passenger seat. However, th e front passenger airbag may deploy, if
luggage is put in the seat or the seat belt is buckled up, regardless of the pres -
ence of an occupant in the seat.
■Operating conditions (side and curtain shield airbags)
●The SRS side airbags and curtain shield airbags are designed to inflate, when
the passenger compartment is subjected to a severe impact from the side.
●The SRS side airbag on the passenger seat will not activate, if there is no passen -
ger sitting in the front passenger seat. Ho
wever, the side airbag on the passen-
ger seat may deploy, if luggage is put in the seat or the seat belt is buckled up,
r
egardless of the presence of the occupant in the seat.

66
1-7. Safety information
CAUTION
■SRS airbag precautions
Observe the following precautions regarding the airbags. Failure to do so may
ca
use death or serious injury:
●The driver and all passengers in the vehicle must wear their seat belts properly. 
The SRS airbags are supplemental devices to be used with seat belts.
●The SRS driver airbag deploys by a cons iderable force and can cause death or
serious injury especially, if the driver is very close to the airbag. The National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) advises: 
Since the risk zone for driver airbag is th e fi
rst 2 - 3 in. (50 - 75 mm) of inflation,
placing yourself 10 in. (250 mm) from your driver airbag provides you with a
clear margin of safety. This distance is measured from the center of the steering
wheel to your breastbone. If you sit less than 10 in. (250 mm) away now, you can
change your driving position in several ways:
• Move your seat to the rear as far as you can while still reaching the pedals
co
mfortably.
• Slightly recline the back of the seat. Alt
hough vehicle designs vary, many driv-
ers can achieve the 10 in. (250 mm) distance, even with the driver seat all the
w
ay forward, simply by reclining the back of the seat somewhat. If reclining
the back of your seat makes it hard to see the road, raise yourself by using a
firm, non-slippery cushion or raise the seat if your vehicle has that feature.
• If your steering wheel is adjustable, ti lt it do
wnward. This points the airbag
toward your chest instead of your head and neck.