Page 29 of 376
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Qz What's wrong with this?
A: The belt is buckled in the wrong place.
A CAUTION:
m
You can be seriously injured if your belt is
buckled in the wrong place like this. In
a crash,
the belt would
go up over your abdomen. The
belt forces would be there, not at the pelvic
bones. This could cause serious internal injuries.
Always buckle your belt into the buckle
nearest you.
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Page 30 of 376
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine &: What’s wrong with this?
.-.
A: The belt is over an armrest.
&, CAb I’ION:
I
You can be seriously injured if your belt goes
over
an armrest like this. The belt would be much
too high. In a crash,
you can slide under the belt.
The belt force would then be applied at the
abdomen, not at the pelvic bones, and that could
cause serious
or fatal injuries. Be sure the belt
goes under the armrests.
Page 31 of 376
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine What’s wrong with this?
A: The shoulder belt is worn under the arm. It should
be worn
over the shoulder at all times.
A CAUTICU:
You can be seriously injured if you wear the
shoulder belt under your arm. In
a crash, your
body would move
too far forward, which would
increase the chance
of head and neck injury.
Also, the belt would apply too much force to the
ribs, which aren’t as strong as shoulder bones.
You could also severely injure internal organs
like your liver or spleen.
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Page 32 of 376
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine &.’ What’s wrong with this?
A: The belt is twisted across the body.
You can be seriously injured by a twisted belt. In
a crash, you wouldn’t have the full width of the
belt to spread impact forces. If a belt is twisted,
make it straight
so it can work properly, or ask
your dealer to fix it.
Page 33 of 376
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
The belt should
go back out of the way.
Before you close
the door, be sure the belt is out of the
way.
If you slam the door on it, you can damage both the
belt and your vehicle.
Supplemental Inflatable Restraint
(SIR) System
This part explains the Supplemental Inflatable
Restraint (SIR) system or
air bag system.
If it says SUPPLEMENTAL
INFLATABLE RESTRAINT
on the middle part of the
steering wheel and there’s
a right front passenger seat,
your vehicle has two air
bags
-- one air bag for the
driver and another air bag for
the right front passenger.
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Page 34 of 376

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If it says SUPPLEMENTAL INFLATABLE
RESTRAINT on the middle part
of the steering wheel
but there
is no right front passenger seat, your vehicle
has an air bag for the driver only.
If it doesn’t say SUPPLEMENTAL INFLATABLE
RESTRAINT
on the middle part of the steering wheel,
your vehicle doesn’t have air bags.
Here are the most important things to know about the
air bag system:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if
you aren’t wearing your safety belt -- even if you
have an air bag. Wearing your safety belt during
a crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things
inside the vehicle or being ejected from it. The air
bag is only
a “supplemental restraint.” That is, it
works with safety belts but doesn’t replace them.
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: 0
Air bags are designed to work only in moderate to
severe crashes where the front of your vehicle hits
something. They aren’t designed to inflate
at all in
rollover,
rear, side or low-speed frontal crashes.
Everyone in your vehicle, including the driver,
should wear
a safety belt properly -- whether or
not there’s an air bag for that person.
I A C1”’ L ION:
Air bags inflate with great force, faster than the
blink of
an eye. If you’re too close to an inflating
air bag, it could seriously injure you. Safety belts
help keep you in position for an
air bag inflation
in
a crash. Always wear your safety belt, even
with an
air bag. The driver should sit as far
back
as possible while still maintaining control
of the vehicle.
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Page 35 of 376
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If your vehicle has an air bag for the right front
passenger,
please read this:
A CAUTION:
r
An inflating air bag can seriously injure small
children. Always secure children properly in your
vehicle.
To read how, see the part of this manual
called “Children” and the caution label
on the
right front passenger’s safety belt.
AIR
BAG
There is an air bag readiness
light
on the instrument
panel, which shows
AIR BAG.
The system checks the air bag’s electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells
you if there is an electrical
problem. See “Air
Bag Readiness Light” in the Index
for more information.
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Page 38 of 376

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. The air bag supplements the
protection provided
by safety belts. Air bags distribute
the force
of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s
upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually.
But
air bags would not help you in many types of collisions,
including rollovers, rear impacts and side impacts,
primarily because
an occupant’s motion is not toward
the air bag. Air bags should never be regarded as
anything more than
a supplement to safety belts,
and then only
in moderate to severe frontal or
near-frontal collisions.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After the air bag inflates, it quickly deflates. This occurs
so quickly that some people may not even realize the air
bag inflated. Some components of the air bag module
in the steering wheel hub for the driver’s air bag, or the
instrument panel for the right front passenger’s bag, will
be
hot for a short time. The part of the bag that comes
into contact with you may be warm, but it will never be
too hot to touch. There will be some smoke and dust
coming from vents in the deflated air bags.
Air bag inflation
will
not prevent the driver from seeing or from
being able
to steer the vehicle, nor will it stop people
from leaving the vehicle.
r
-
When an air bag inflates, there is dust in the air.
This dust could cause breathing problems for
people with a history of asthma or other
breathing trouble.
To avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon as
it is safe to do so.
If you have breathing problems but can’t get out
of the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or door.
The air bags are designed to inflate only once. After
they inflate, you’ll need some new parts for
your air
bag system. If you don’t get them,
the air bag system
won’t be there
to help protect you in another crash.
A new system
will include air bag modules and
possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
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