airbag TOYOTA AVALON 1996 Owners Manual

Indicator symbols on the instrument panel5
Anti-lock brake system warning light *1Brake system warning light *1
Seat belt reminder light*1
Discharge warning light*1
Low oil pressure warning light*1
Malfunction indicator lamp*1
Low fuel level warning light *1
Open door warning light*1
SRS airbag warning light*1
Turn signal indicator lights
Headlight high beam indicator light
Rear light failure warning light*1
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Part 1
21
OPERATION OF
INSTRUMENTS AND
AND CONTROLSÐ
Chapter 1-3
Seats, Seat belts, Steering
wheel and Mirrors

Seats

Front seats

Head restraints

Seat heaters

Seat belts

SRS airbags

Child restraint

Tilt steering wheel

Outside rear view mirrors

Anti-glare inside rear view
mirror

Vanity mirrors
While the vehicle is being driven, all ve-
hicle occupants should have the seatback
upright, sit well back in the seat and prop-
erly wear the seat belts provided.
CAUTION

Do not drive with the occupants
not properly seated, such as sit-
ting on top of a folded-down seat-
back, or in the luggage compart-
ment. Persons not properly
seated and not properly re-
strained by seat belts can be se-
verely injured in the event of emer-
gency braking or a collision.

During driving, do not allow pas-
sengers to stand up or move
around between seats. Balance
can be unsteady and severe inju-
ries can occur in the event of
emergency braking or a collision.!
Adjust the driver's seat so that the foot
pedals, steering wheel and instrument
panel controls are within easy reach of the
driver.
CAUTION

Adjustments should not be made
while the vehicle is moving, as the
seat may unexpectedly move and
cause the driver to lose control of
the vehicle.

When adjusting the seat, be careful
not to hit the seat against a passen-
ger or luggage.

After adjusting the seat position,
try sliding it forward and backward
to make sure it is locked in posi-
tion.

After adjusting the seatback, exert
body pressure to make sure it is
locked in position.

Do not put objects under the seats
as they may interfere with the seat-
lock mechanism or unexpectedly
push up the seat position adjusting
lever; the seat may suddenly move,
causing the driver to lose control of
the vehicle.

While adjusting the seat, do not put
your hands under the seat or near
the moving parts. You may jam
your hands or fingers.!
Seats
Front seatsÐ
ÐSeat adjustment precautions
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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
Toyota dealer.
CAUTION!
The SRS (Supplemental Restraint Sys-
tem) airbags are designed to provide
further protection to occupants in the
following seats when added to the pri-
mary protection provided by the seat
belts.

Vehicles with separate front seatsÐ
The SRS airbags are designed to pro-
tect the driver and front passenger.

Vehicles with bench front seatsÐThe
SRS airbags are designed to protect
the driver and right-front passenger.
They are not designed to protect occu-
pant in the center position. In response to a severe frontal impact, the
SRS airbags work together with the seat
belts to prevent or reduce injury by inflat-
ing, 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 acti-
vated even with no passenger in the front
seat.
SRS airbags
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This indicator comes on when the
ignition key is turned to the ACCº or
ONº 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, in-
flators, warning light, interconnecting wir-
ing and power sources.The SRS airbag system is designed to
activate in response to a severe frontal
impact within the shaded area be-
tween the arrows in the illustration.
The SRS airbags will deploy if the severity
of the impact is above the designed
threshold level, comparable to an approxi-
mate 20 km/h (14 mph) collision when im-
pacting 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 im-
pact, or if it is
involved in an underride col-
lision (e.g. a collision in which the nose of
the vehicle underridesº, or goes under,
the bed of a truck).
It is possible with collision severity at the
marginal level of airbag sensor detection
and activation that only one of your ve-
hicle's two airbags will deploy.
For the safety of all occupants, be sure to
always wear seat belts.
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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.The SRS airbag system mainly consists
of the following components and their
locations are shown in the illustration.
1 Airbag sensor assembly
2 Steering wheel pad (airbag and inflator)
3 Passenger airbag module (airbag and inflator)
4 SRS airbag warning light
The airbag sensor assembly consists of a
safing sensor and airbag sensor. In a severe frontal impact, sensors detect
deceleration and the system triggers the
airbag inflators. Then a chemical reaction
in the inflators momentarily fills the air-
bags with non-toxic nitrogen gas to help
restrain the forward motion of the occu-
pants.
When the airbags inflate, they produce a
fairly
loud noise and release some smoke
along with the nitrogen gas. This is not
harmful and does not indicate a fire. Be
sure to wash off any residue as soon as
possible to prevent minor skin irritation.
Deployment of the airbags happen in a
fraction of a second, so the airbags must
inflate with considerable force. While the
system is designed to reduce serious inju-
ries, it may also cause minor burns or
abrasions and swellings.
Parts of the airbag module (steering
wheel hub, dashboard) may be hot for
several minutes, but the airbags them-
selves w ill not be hot. The airbags are de-
signed to inflate only once.
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34A crash severe enough to inflate the air-
bags
may break the windshield as the ve-
hicle buckles. In vehicles with a passen-
ger airbag the windshield may also be
damaged by absorbing some of the force
of the inflating airbag.
CAUTION!

The SRS airbag system is designed
only as a supplement to the prima-
ry protection of the seat belt sys-
tems of the driver and front passen-
ger. The front seat occupants are
particularly susceptible to injury if
they do not wear their seat belts;
when sudden braking or a collision
occurs, they may be thrown for-
ward. To obtain further protection
in an accident, the driver and all
passengers in the vehicle should
always wear their seat belts when
driving. For instructions and pre-
cautions concerning the seat belt
system, see Seat beltsº in this
chapter.

A baby or small child who is too
small to use a seat belt should be
properly secured in a rear seat us-
ing a child restraint system.

Do not use a rear-facing child re-
straint system in the front seat be-
cause the force of the rapid infla-
tion of the passenger airbag may
cause severe injury to the child. Ve-
hicles with a passenger airbag dis-
play a caution label on the passen-
ger side instrument panel as
shown above to remind you not to
install a rear-facing child restraint
system on the front seat.
When using a forward-facing child
restraint system in the front seat,
the seat must be moved as far back
as possible. For instructions con-
cerning the installation of a child
restraint system, see Child re-
straintº in this chapter.
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Do not sit on the edge of the seat or
lean over the dashboard when the
vehicle is in use. The airbags inflate
with considerable speed and force;
you may be severely injured. Sit up
straight and well back in the seat,
and always use your seat belt.
Do not allow a child to stand up, or
to kneel on the front passenger
seat. The airbag inflates with con-
siderable speed and force; the
child may be severely injured.

Do not hold a child on your lap or in
your arms. Use a child restraint
system in the rear seat. For instruc-
tions concerning the installation of
a child restraint system, see Child
restraintº in this chapter.
Do not put objects on or in front of
the dashboard or steering wheel
pad that houses the airbag system.
They might restrict inflation or
cause personal injury as they are
projected rearward.

Do not modify, remove or open any
component or wiring, such as the
steering wheel, column cover, front
passenger airbag cover, front pas-
senger airbag, airbag sensor as-
sembly. Doing any of these may
cause sudden SRS airbag inflation
or disable the system, which could
result in personal injury.
Failure to follow these instructions
can result in severe injuries.
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Do not perform any of the followingchanges without consulting your
Toyota dealer. Such changes caninterfere with proper operation ofthe SRS airbag system in somecases.
Installation of electronic itemssuch as a mobile two-way radio,
cassette tape player or compactdisc player
Modification of the suspension
system
Modification of the front endstructure
Attachment of a grille guard (bullbar, kangaroo bar, etc.), snow-
plow, winches or any other equip-ment to the front end
Repairs made on or near the con-sole, steering column, steeringwheel or dashboard near the frontpassenger airbag
NOTICE
This SRS airbag system has a service re-
minder indicator to inform the driver of op-
erating problems. If either of the following
conditions occurs, this indicates a mal-
function of the airbags. Contact your To-
yota dealer as soon as possible to service
the vehicle.

The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the ACCº or
ONº position, or remains on.

The light comes on while driving.In the following cases, contact your Toyo-
ta dealer as soon as possible:

The SRS airbags have been inflated.

The front part of the vehicle (shaded in
the illustration) was involved in an ac-
cident not of the extent to cause the
SRS airbags to inflate

The pad section of the steering wheel or
front passenger airbag cover (shaded in
the illustration) is scratched, cracked, or
otherwise damaged.
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To comply with Canada Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards, vehicles sold in Cana-
da are provided with a bracket set in the
glovebox,
designed for use with any of the
3 anchor locations shown in the illustra-
tion.
(C) INSTALLATION ON FRONT SEAT OUTSIDE
Do not use a child restraint system which
requires use of a top strap in the front
seat. A child restraint system which re-
quires use of a top strap should only be
installed in the rear seat.
CAUTION!

Do not use a rear- facing child re-
straint system in the front seat be-
cause the force of the rapid infla-
tion of the passenger airbag may
cause severe injury to the child.
Vehicles with a passenger airbag
display a caution label on the pas-
senger side instrument panel as
shown above to remind you not to
install a rear- facing child restraint
system on the front seat.

When using a forward-facing child
restraint system, move the seat as
far back as possible.
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If your driving position is not satisfactory, or
the child restraint system interferes with
your driving, install it at another position.
CAUTION!

Ignoring the above instructions
may result in a serious injury in
case of an accident.

Do not use a rear-facing child re-
straint system in the front seat be-
cause the force of the rapid infla-
tion of the passenger airbag may
cause severe injury to the child.

When using a forward-facing
child restraint system, move the
driver and passenger seats as far
back as possible, set both seat-
backs to the same angle as the
back of the child restraint system,
set both seat cushions at the same
height and make sure your driving
position is satisfactory.
1. Fasten the lap and shoulder belt over
the child restraint system following the in-
structions provided by its manufacturer.
CAUTION!

After inserting the tab, make sure
the tab and buckle are locked.

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 Toyota dealer.
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