1997 TOYOTA AVALON lock

24

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 catch
and injure your hands or fingers.1. SEAT POSITION ADJUSTING
LEVER
Pull the lever up. Then slide the seat to
the desired position with slight body
pressure and release lever.
2. SEATBACK ANGLE ADJUSTING LEVER
Lean forward and pull the lever up.
Then lean back to the desired angle
and release the lever.
CAUTION!
To reduce the risk of sliding under
the lap belt during a collision, avoid
reclining the seatback any more than
needed. The seat belts provide maxi-
mum protection in a frontal or rear
collision when the driver and the
passenger are sitting up straight and
well back in the seats. If you are re-
clined, the lap belt may slide past
your hips and apply restraint forces
directly to the abdomen. Therefore,
in the event of a frontal collision, the
risk of personal injury may increase
with increasing recline of the seat-
back.
ÐAdjusting front seats
(manual seat)
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261. SEAT POSITION AND SEAT CUSH-
ION HEIGHT ADJUSTING SWITCH
Move the control switch in the desired
direction.
Releasing the switch will stop the seat at
that position.
Do not place anything under the front
seats. It might interfere with the seat-lock
mechanism.
2. SEATBACK ANGLE ADJUSTING SWITCH
Move the control switch in the desired
direction.
Releasing the switch will stop the seat-
back at that position.
CAUTION!
To reduce the risk of sliding under
the lap belt during a collision, avoid
reclining the seatback any more than
needed. The seat belts provide maxi-
mum protection in frontal or rear col-
lision when the driver and the pas-
senger are sitting up straight and
well back in the seats. If you are re-
clined, the lap belt may slide past
your hips and apply restraint forces
directly to the abdomen. Therefore,
in the event of a frontal collision, the
risk of personal injury may increase
with increasing recline of the seat-
back.
3. DRIVER'S SEAT LUMBAR SUP- PORT ADJUSTING LEVER
Pull the lever forward until you have
reached your desired position. To re-
duce the lumbar su pport, pull the lever
back toward its original position.
For your safety, adjust the head re-
straint before driving.
To raise: Pull it up.
To lower: Push it down while pressing the
lock release button.
You can also move the head restraint for-
ward or backward, pull or push the head
restraint.
The head restraining is most effective
when it is close to your head. Therefore,
using a cushion on the seat back is not rec-
ommended.
Head restraints
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27
CAUTION!

Adjust the top of the head restraint
so that it is closest to the top of
your ears.

After adjusting the head restraint,
make sure it is locked in position.

Do not drive with the restraints re-
moved.
To turn on the seat heater, push the
switch.
The key must be in the ONº position.
Pushing on the opposite side will turn it off.
CAUTION!
Occupants must use caution when
operating the seat heater because it
may make them feel too hot or cause
burns at low temperatures (erythe-
ma, varicella). Use extra caution for;

Baby, small child, elderly person,
sick person or handicapped per-
son

Persons who have delicate skin

Persons who are exhausted

Persons who have t aken alcohol or
drugs which induce sleep (sleep-
ing drug, cold remedy, etc.)
To prevent the seat overheating, do
not use the seat heater with a blan-
ket, cushion, or other insulating ob-
jects which cover the seat.
Seat heaters
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30
Adjust the seat as needed (front seats
only) and sit up straight and well back
in the seat. To fasten your belt, pull it
out of the retractor and insert the tab
into the buckle.
You will hear a click when the tab locks
into the buckle.
The seat belt length automatically adjusts
to your size and the seat position.
The retractor will lock the belt during a
sudden stop or on impact. It also may lock
if you lean forward too quickly. A slow,
easy motion will allow the belt to extend,
and you can move around freely. If the seat belt cannot be pulled out of the
retractor,
firmly pull the belt and release it.
You will then be able to smoothly pull the
belt out of the retractor.
When a passenger's shoulder belt is com-
pletely extended and is then retracted
even slightly, the belt is locked in that posi-
tion and cannot be extended. This feature
is used to hold the child restraint system
securely. (For details, see Child restraintº
in this chapter.) To free the belt again, fully
retract the belt and then pull the belt out
once more.CAUTION!

After inserting the tab, make sure
the tab and buckle are locked and
that the belt 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. Do not use the
seat until the seat belt is fixed. It
cannot protect an adult occupant
or your child from injury.
Seat belts with an adjustable shoulder
anchorÐ
Adjust the shoulder anchor position
to your size.
To raise: Slide the anchor up.
To lower: Push in the lock release button
and slide the anchor down.
After adjustment make sure the anchor is
locked in position.
ÐFront and rear seat belts
(3-point type)
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32
To release the belt, press the buckle-
release button and allow the belt to re-
tract.
If the belt does not retract smoothly, pull
it out and check for kinks or twists. Then
make sure it remains untwisted as it re-
tracts.Sit up straight and well back in the
seat. To fasten your belt, insert the tab
into the buckle.
You will hear a click when the tab locks
into the buckle.
If the belt is not long enough for you, hold
the tab at a right angle to the belt and pull
on the tab.
CAUTION!

After inserting the tab, make sure
the tab and buckle are locked and
that the belt 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. Do not use the
seat until the seat belt is fixed. It
cannot protect an adult occupant
or your child from injury.
ÐFront center seat belt
(2-point type)
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34If your seat belt cannot be fastened se-
curely because it is not long enough, a
personalized seatbelt extender is avail-
able from your Toyota dealer free of
charge.
Please contact your local Toyota dealer
so that the dealer can order the proper re-
quired length for the extender. Bring the
heaviest
coat you expect to wear for prop-
er measurement and selection of length.
Additional ordering information is avail-
able at your Toyota dealer.
CAUTION!
When using the seat belt extender,
observe the following. Failure to fol-
low 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 with-
out it.

Remember that the extender pro-
vided for your may not be safe
when used on a different vehicle,
or for another person or at a differ-
ent seating position than the one
originally intended for.
To connect the extender to the seat
belt, insert the tab into the seat belt
buckle so that the PRESSº signs on
the buckle-release buttons of the ex-
tender 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 extend-
er itself.
When not in use, remove the extender
and store in the vehicle for future use.
ÐSeat belt extender
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35

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 seats-
The SRS airbags are designed to pro-
tect the driver and front passenger.

Vehicles with bench front seats-The
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 help preventing or reduce injury by
inflating, in order to decrease the likeli-
hood of the driver's or front passenger's
head or chest directly hitting the steering
wheel or dashboard. The passenger air-
bag is activated even with no passenger
in the front seat.
SRS airbags
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42A child restraint system for a small
child or baby must itself be properly
restrained on the seat with either the
lap belt or the lap portion of the lap/
shoulder belt. You must carefully con-
sult the manufacturer's instructions
which accompany your child restraint
system.
To provide proper restraint, use a
child re-
straint system following the manufactur-
er's instructions about the appropriate
age and size of the child for the child re-
straint system.
Install the child restraint system correctly
following the instructions provided by its
manufacturer of the system. General di-
rections are also provided under the fol-
lowing illustrations.
The child restraint system should be
installed on the rear seat. According to ac-
cident statistics, the child is safer when
properly restrained in the rear seat than in
the front seat.
CAUTION!

Never install a rear-facing child re-
straint system on the front seat. In
the event of an accident, the force
of the rapid inflation of the airbag
can cause serious injury if a rear-
facing child restraint system is
installed on the front seat.

Unless it is unavoidable, do not
install a forward-facing child re-
straint system on the front seat.

If you must install a forward-fac-
ing child restraint system on the
front seat, move the seat as far
back as possible.

After installing the child restraint
system, make sure it is secured in
place following the manufactur-
er's instructions. If it is not re-
strained securely, it may cause in-
jury to the child in the event of a
sudden stop or accident. When not using the child restraint system,
keep it secured with the seat belt. This
will
prevent it injuring passengers in the event
of a sudden stop or accident.
Your vehicle has anchors for securing the
top strap of a child restraint system. The
anchor nuts are welded beneath the sheet
metal to permit installation of an anchor
bracket for a child restraint system.
To install an anchor bracket, use an 8 mm
X 30 mm X 1.25 mm coarse thread metric
bolt and 15 mm (0.6 in.) spacer. Note that
the bolts accompanying many child re-
straint systems are not metric. You can
damage the anchor nuts on our vehicle if
you force bolts with different thread into
the anchor nuts.
For instructions about how to install the
anchor bracket, see Top strap anchors
and locations.º
If your child restraint system does not pro-
vide any of the necessary parts, you can
purchase the following items from your
Toyota dealer.
* CRS installation kit
(Part No. 04731-22012)Ðcontains 1
bolt, 3 types of spacers and 1 locking
clip.
* Bolt (Part No. 91511-60830)
ÐChild restraint system
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