LEXUS SC300 1999 Owners Manual

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
123
Adjust the position of the lap and shoulder belts.
Position the lap belt as low as possible on your hips ± not on
your waist, then adjust it to a snug fit by pulling the shoulder
portion upward through the latch plate.
CAUTION


High±positioned lap belts and loose±fitting belts both could
cause severe injuries due to sliding under the lap belt
during a collision or other unintended result. Keep the lap
belt positioned as low on hip as possible.

For your safety, do not place the shoulder belt under your
arm.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
124To release the belt, press the buckle release button and
allow the belt to retract.
If the belt does not retract smoothly, pull it out and check for
kinks or twists. Then make sure it remains untwisted as it
retracts.
Seat belt extender
If your seat belt cannot be fastened securely because it is not
long enough, a personalized seat belt extender is available
from your Lexus dealer free of charge.
Please contact your local Lexus dealer so that the dealer can
order the proper required length for the extender. Bring the
heaviest coat you expect to wear for proper measurement and
selection of length. Additional ordering information is
available at your Lexus dealer.
CAUTION
When using the seat belt extender, observe the following.
Failure to follow these instructions could result in less
effectiveness of
the seat belt restraint system in case of vehicle
accident, increasing the chance of personal injury.

Never use the seat belt extender if you can fasten the seat
belt without it.

Remember that the extender provided for you may not be
safe when used on a different vehicle, or for another person
or at a different seating position than the one originally
intended for.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
125
To connect the extender to the seat belt, insert the tab into
the seat belt buckle so that the ºPRESSº signs on the
buckle r
elease buttons of the extender and the seat belt are
both facing outward as shown.
You will hear a click when the tab locks into the buckle.
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 vehicle interior and extender itself.
When not in use, remove the extender and store in the vehicle
for future use.
CAUTION

After inserting the tab, make sure the tab and buckle are
locked and that the seat belt extender is not twisted.

Do not insert coins, clips, etc. in the buckle as this
may prevent you from properly latching the tab and
buckle.

If the seat belt does not function normally,
immediately contact your Lexus dealer. Do not use
the seat until the seat belt is fixed. It cannot protect
an adult occupant or your child from injury.Front seat belt pretensioners

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
126
The driver and front passenger's seat belt pretensioners
are designed to be activated in response to a severe frontal
impact.
The airbag system and each pretensioner operates
independently because each has its own separate sensor.
A pretensioner sensor is located in each front seat belt
retractor assembly. When the pretensioner sensor detects the
shock of a severe frontal impact, the front seat belt is quickly
drawn back in by the retractor so that the belt snugly restrains
the front seat occupant.
When a seat belt pretensioner is activated, an operating noise
may be heard and a small amount of smoke±like gas may be
released. This gas is harmless and does not indicate that a fire
is occurring.
Once the seat belt pretensioner has been activated, the seat
belt retractor remains locked.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
127
CAUTION
Do not modify, remove or strike the front seat belt retractor
assemblies or surrounding area. Doing any of these may cause
sudden operation of the front seat belt pr etensioners or disable
the system, which could result in personal injury.
Failure to follow these instructions can result in severe
injuries.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
128
NOTICE
Do not perform any of the following changes without
consulting your Lexus dealer. Such changes can
interfere with proper operation of the seat belt
pretensioners in some cases.

Repairs on or near the front seat belt retractor
assemblies.

Modification of the suspension system.

Modification of the front end structure.

Attachment of a grille guard (bull bar, kangaroo bar,
etc.), snow plow, winches or any other equipment to
the front end.
In the following case, contact your Lexus dealer as soon as
possible:

If either front seat belt does not retract or cannot be pulled
out due to a malfunction or activation of the pretensioner.

The front seat belt retractor assembly or surrounding area
has been damaged.
SRS AIRBAGS
The SRS (Supplemental Restraint System) airbags are
designed to provide further protection for the driver and
front passenger when added to the primary protection
provided by the seat belts.
In response to a severe frontal impact, the SRS airbags
work together with the seat belts to help prevent or r educe
injury by inflating, in order to decrease the likelihood of
the driver's or front passenger's head or chest directly
hitting the steering wheel or dashboard.
The passenger airbag is activated even with no passenger in
the front seat.
Be sure to wear
your seat belt.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
129
CAUTION
The driver or front passenger too close to the steering wheel
or dashboard during airbag deployment can be killed or
seriously injured. Lexus strongly recommends that:

The driver sit as far back as possible from the steering
wheel while still maintaining control of the vehicle.

The front passenger sit as far back as possible from the
dashboard.

All vehicle occupants be properly restrained using the
available seat belts.
This indicator comes on when the ignition key is turned to
the ºACCº or ºONº position. It goes off after about 6
seconds. This means the SRS airbags are operating
properly.
The SRS airbag warning light system monitors the airbag
sensor assembly, inflators, warning light, interconnecting
wiring and power sources. (For details, see ºService
reminder indicators and warning buzzersº on page 53 for
instructions.)

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
130
The SRS airbag system is designed to activate in response
to a severe frontal impact within the shaded area between
the arrows in the illustration.
There may be the case that the SRS airbags will not activate
with such an impact in which the occupant wearing the seat
belt correctly would not get serious injury.
The SRS airbags will deploy if the severity of the impact is
above the designed threshold level, comparable to an
approximate 20 km/h (14 mph) collision when impacting
straight into a fixed barrier that does not move or deform.
If the severity of the impact is below the above threshold
level, the SRS airbags may not deploy.
However, this threshold velocity will be considerably higher
if the vehicle strikes an object, such as a parked vehicle or sign
pole, which can move or deform on impact, or if it is involved
in an underride collision (a collision in which the nose of the
vehicle ºunderridesº, or goes under, the bed of a truck, etc.). It is possible with collision severity at the marginal level of
airbag sensor detection and activation that only one of your
vehicle's two airbags will deploy.
For the safety of all occupants, be sure to always wear seat
belts.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
131
The SRS airbags are not designed to inflate if the vehicle
is subjected to a side or rear impact, if it rolls over, or if it
is involved in a low±speed frontal collision.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
132
The SRS airbags may operate if a serious impact occurs
to the underside of your vehicle. Some examples are
shown in the illustration.