1998 FORD F250 Owners Manual

Passenger air bag deactivate
switch
Your vehicle has a passenger air
bag deactivate switch. This switch
MUST be used to activate or
deactivate the passenger air bag
whenever a child seat is used in
the right front or center front
passenger seat position.
Keep the passenger air bag
turned on unless there is a
child seat installed in the front
seat. When the passenger air bag
switch is turned off, the
passenger air bag will not inflate
in a collision.
If the passenger air bag switch is
turned off, it increases the
likelihood of injury to forward
facing occupants in the passenger
seat.
PASSENGER AIRBAG
ON
OFF OFF
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Turning the passenger
air bag off
1. Insert the ignition key, turn the
switch to OFF and remove the key.
2. When the ignition is turned to
the ON position the OFF light
illuminates briefly, momentarily
shuts off and then turns back on.
This indicates that the passenger
air bag is deactivated.
If the light fails to
illuminate when the
passenger air bag switch is in the
OFF position and the ignition
switch is in ON, have the
passenger air bag switch serviced
at your Ford or Lincoln-Mercury
dealer immediately.
In order to avoid
inadvertent deployment of
the passenger air bag, always
remove the ignition key from the
passenger air bag deactivate
switch.
Turning the passenger air bag
back on
The passenger air bag remains
OFF until you turn it back ON.
PASSENGER AIRBAG
ON
OFF OFF
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1. Insert the ignition key and turn
the switch to ON.
2. The OFF light will briefly
illuminate when the ignition is
turned to On. This indicates that
the passenger air bag is
operational.
If the light is illuminated
when the passenger air
bag switch is in the ON position
and the ignition switch is in ON,
have the passenger air bag
switch serviced at your Ford or
Lincoln-Mercury dealer
immediately.
Keep the passenger air bag
turned on unless there is a
child seat installed in the front
seat. When the passenger air bag
switch is turned off, the
passenger air bag will not inflate
in a collision.
PASSENGER AIRBAG
ON
OFF OFF
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SAFETY RESTRAINTS FOR
CHILDREN
Important child restraint
precautions
You are required by law to use
safety restraints for children in the
U.S. and Canada. If small children
ride in your vehicle (generally
children who are four years old or
younger and who weigh 18 kg [40
lbs] or less), you must put them in
safety seats made especially for
children. Check your local and
state or provincial laws for specific
requirements regarding the safety
of children in your vehicle.
Never let a passenger hold
a child on his or her lap
while the vehicle is moving. The
passenger cannot protect the
child from injury in a collision.
Always follow the instructions and
warnings that come with any infant
or child restraint you might use.
When possible, place children in
the rear seat of your vehicle.
Accident statistics suggest that
children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seating
position.
Children and safety belts
Children who are too large for
child safety seats (as specified by
your child safety seat
manufacturer) should always wear
safety belts.
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Follow all the important safety
restraint and air bag precautions
that apply to adult passengers in
your vehicle.
If the shoulder belt portion of a
combination lap and shoulder belt
can be positioned so it does not
cross or rest in front of the child's
face or neck, the child should wear
the lap and shoulder belt. Moving
the child closer to the center of
the vehicle may help provide a
good shoulder belt fit.
If the shoulder belt cannot be
properly positioned:
²move the child to one of the
seats with a lap belt only (if
equipped)
OR
²if the child is the proper size,
restrain the child in a safety
seat.
Do not leave children,
unreliable adults, or pets
unattended in your vehicle.
To improve the fit of lap and
shoulder belts on children who
have outgrown child safety seats,
Ford recommends use of a
belt-positioning booster seat that is
labelled as conforming to all
Federal motor vehicle safety
standards. Belt-positioning booster
seats raise the child and provide a
shorter, firmer seating cushion that
encourages safer seating posture
and better fit of lap and shoulder
belts on the child.
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A belt-positioning booster should
be used if the shoulder belt rests
in front of the child's face or neck,
or if the lap belt does not fit
snugly on both thighs, or if the
thighs are too short to let the child
sit all the way back on the seat
cushion when the lower legs hang
over the edge of the seat cushion.
You may wish to discuss the
special needs of your child with
your pediatrician.
SAFETY SEATS FOR CHILDREN
Child and infant or child safety
seats
Use a safety seat that is
recommended for the size and
weight of the child. Carefully
follow all of the manufacturer's
instructions with the safety seat
you put in your vehicle. If you do
not install and use the safety seat
properly, the child may be injured
in a sudden stop or collision.
When installing a child safety seat:
²Use the correct safety belt
buckle for that seating position.
²Make sure the tongue is
securely fastened in the buckle.
²Keep the buckle release button
pointing up and away from the
safety seat, with the tongue
between the child seat and the
release button, to prevent
accidental unbuckling.
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²Place seat back in upright
position.
²Put the safety belt in the
automatic locking mode. Refer
toAutomatic locking mode.
Ford recommends the use of a
child safety seat having a top
tether strap. Install the child safety
seat in a seating position which is
capable of providing a tether
anchorage. For more information
on top tether straps, refer to
Attaching safety seats with tether
straps.
Carefully follow all of the
manufacturer's instructions
included with the safety seat you
put in your vehicle. If you do not
install and use the safety seat
properly, the child may be
injured in a sudden stop or
collision.
Installing child safety seats in
combination lap and shoulder
belt seating positions
1. Position the child safety seat in
a seat with a combination lap and
shoulder belt.
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Air bag can kill or injure a
child in a child seat. If you
must use a forward-facing child
seat in the front seat, move seat
all the way back.
2. Pull down on the shoulder belt
and then grasp the shoulder belt
and lap belt together.
3. While holding the shoulder and
lap belt portions together, route
the tongue through the child seat
according to the child seat
manufacturer's instructions. Be
sure the belt webbing is not
twisted.
4. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle for that seating
position until you hear and feel the
latch engage. Make sure the
tongue is latched securely by
pulling on it.
PRESS
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