1998 HONDA ODYSSEY seats

Driver and Passenger Safety

This section gives you important information about how to protect

yourself and your passengers. It
shows you how to use seat belts

properly. It explains your Supple-

mental Restraint System. And it tells

you how to properly restrain infants
and children in your vehicle.

Important Safety Precautions .......... 4

Your Vehicle's Safety Features........ 5
Seat Belts........................................ 6
Airbags............................................ 7

Seats & Seat-Backs........................ 8
Head Restraints............................. 8
Door Locks..................................... 9
Pre-Drive Safety Checklist........... 9
Protecting Adults............................. 10 1. Close and Lock the Doors...... 10
2. Adjust the Front Seats............ 10
3. Adjust the Seat-Backs............. 11
4. Adjust the Head Restraints.... 12
5. Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts...................................... 13

6. Adjust the Steering Wheel..... 16

7. Maintain a Proper Sitting
Position................................. 16
Advice for Pregnant Women...... 17
Additional Safety Precautions.... 17
Protecting Children......................... 19
All Children Must Be Restrained................................ 19
Children Should Sit in the Back
Seat............................................ 20

The Passenger's Airbag Poses Serious Risks to Children....... 20
If You Must Drive with Several Children.................................... 21 If a Child Requires Close

Attention................................... 22

Additional Safety Precautions.... 22
General Guidelines for Using
Child Seats................................ 23

Protecting Infants........................ 27
Protecting Small Children.......... 31
Protecting Larger Children........ 35 Using Child Seats with Tethers...................................... 38
Additional Information About Your Seat Belts.................................. 41
Seat Belt System Components... 41
Lap/Shoulder Belt....................... 41
Lap Belt......................................... 42
Seat Belt Maintenance................ 42
Additional Information About Your

SRS........................................... 44

SRS Components......................... 44

How Your Airbags Work............ 44
How Your SRS Indicator Light

Works........................................ 45

SRS Service................................... 46

Additional Safety Precautions.... 46

Carbon Monoxide Hazard.............. 47

Safety Labels.................................... 48

Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu s t

Your Vehicle's Safety Features

(1) Safety Cage
(2) Crush Zones
(3) Seats & Seat-Backs (4) Head Restraints
(5) Collapsible Steering Column
(6) Seat Belts (7) Airbags
(8) Door Locks Your vehicle is equipped with many
features that work together to
protect you and your passengers
during a crash.
Some safety features do not require
any action on your part. These
include a strong steel framework
that forms a safety cage around the
passenger compartment; front and rear crush zones that are designed to
crumple and absorb energy during a
crash; and a collapsible steering
column.

These safety features are designed to reduce the severity of injuries in acrash. However, you and your
passengers can't take full advantage
of these safety features unless you
remain sitting in a proper position

and always wear your seal belts

properly. In fact, some safety
features can contribute to injuries if
they are not used properly.
Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Your Vehicle's Safety Features
Seat Belts
For your safety, and the safety of
your passengers, your vehicle is equipped with seat belts in all seating
positions.
Your seat belt system alsoincludes a light on the
instrument panel to remind you and
your passengers to fasten your seat belts.
Why Wear Seat Belts
Seat belts are the single most
effective safety device for adults and
larger children. (Infants and smaller children must be properly restrained
in child seats.)
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags. In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces require you to
wear seat belts.
When properly worn, seat belts: Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle's built-in safety features. Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including side and rear impacts and rollovers. (Your
airbags can only be helpful in a
severe frontal collision.)
Help keep you from being thrown

against the inside of the vehicle

and against other occupants.

Keep you from being thrown

outside of the vehicle.

Help keep you in a good position

should the airbags ever deploy. A

good position reduces the risk of
injury from an inflating airbag, and

allows you to get the best
advantage from the airbag.

Of course, seat belts cannot

completely protect you in every

crash. But in most cases, seat belts

can reduce your risk of serious

injury.

What you should do: Always wear

your seat belt, and make sure you
wear it properly.

Driver and Passenger Safety
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even if you have airbags.
Be sure you and your
passengers always wear seat belts and wear them properly.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Your Vehicle's Safety Features
Seats & Seat-Backs
Your vehicle's seats are designed to keep you in a comfortable, upright
position so you can take full advantage of the protection offered
by seat belts and the seats' energy absorbing materials.
How you adjust your seats and seat-
backs can also affect your safety. For example, sitting too close to the
steering wheel or dashboard
increases your risk of being injured
by striking the inside of the vehicle or being injured by an inflating

airbag.

Reclining a seat-back too far makes
your seat belt less effective and increases your chance of sliding
under the seat belt and beingseriously injured in a crash.
What you should do: Move the front

seats as far back as possible, and
keep adjustable seat-backs in an upright position whenever the
vehicle is moving.
Head Restraints
Head restraints can help protect you
from whiplash and other injuries. For maximum protection, the back of
your head should rest against the center of the head restraint.

Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Your Vehicle's Safety Features
Door Locks
Keeping your doors locked reduces
the chance of being thrown out of
the vehicle during a crash. It also
helps prevent occupants from accidentally opening a door and
falling out, and outsiders from unexpectedly opening your doors.
Pre-Drive Safety Checklist

To make sure you and your passengers get the maximum
protection from your vehicle's safety
features, check the following each
time before you drive away: All adults, and children who have
outgrown child safety seats, are
wearing their seat belts and
wearing them properly (see page
13).
Any infant or small child is
properly restrained in a child seat
in a back seat (see page 19 ). Front seat occupants are sitting as
far back as possible from the steering wheel and dashboard (see page 10). Seat-backs are upright (see page

11).
Head restraints are properly
adjusted (see page 12 ). All doors and the tailgate are
closed and locked (see page 10). All cargo is properly stored or
secured (see page 136).
The rest of this section gives more detailed information about how you
can maximize your safety.
Remember, however, that no safety system can prevent all injuries ordeaths that can occur in severe
crashes, even when seat belts are
properly worn and the airbags deploy.

Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

Introduction
The following pages provide instructions on how to properly
protect the driver and other adult
occupants.

These instructions also apply to children who have outgrown childseats and are large enough to wear
lap/shoulder belts. (See page 35 for
important additional guidelines on
how to properly protect larger children.)
1.Close and Lock the Doors After everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors and
tailgate are closed and locked.
Your vehicle has a door and tailgate
monitor light on the instrument
panel to indicate when a specific
door or the tailgate is not tightly

closed.

For safety, locking the doors reduces
the chance of a passenger, especially a child, opening a door while the
vehicle is moving and accidentally
falling out. It also reduces the chance of someone being thrown out
of the vehicle during a crash.
For security, locked doors can
prevent an outsider from
unexpectedly opening a door when
you come to a stop.
See page 70 for how to lock the
doors.
2.Adjust the Front Seats
Any driver who sits too close to thesteering wheel is at risk of being
seriously injured or killed by striking
the steering wheel or being struck by an inflating airbag during a crash.
Driver and Passenger SafetyProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

To reduce the chance of injury, wear your seat belt properly, sit upright
with your back against the seat, andmove the seat as far back as possible
from the steering wheel while still maintaining full control of the
vehicle. Also make sure your front seat passenger moves their seat as
far to the rear as possible. Most shorter drivers can get far
enough away from the steering
wheel and still reach the pedals. However, if you are concerned about
sitting too close, we recommend that
you investigate whether some type of adaptive equipment may help.
Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it forward and back to make
sure the seat is locked in position.
See page 74 for how to adjust the
front seats.
3.Adjust the Seat-Backs
Adjust the driver's seat-back to a comfortable, upright position,
leaving ample space between your
chest and the airbag cover in the
center of the steering wheel. If you sit too close to the steering wheel,
you could be injured if the airbag inflates. A front passenger should also adjust
the seat-back to an upright position,
but as far from the dashboard as
possible. If the passenger sits too
close to the dashboard, they could be
injured if the airbag inflates.

CONTINUED
Driver and Passenger Safety

Sitting too close to an airbag

can result in serious injury or
death if the airbags inflate.

Always sit as far back from the
airbags as possible.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Adults

6.Adjust the Steering Wheel
Adjust the steering wheel, if needed, so that the wheel points toward your
chest, not toward your face.
Pointing the steering wheel toward
your face decreases the protective capability of the driver's airbag.
See page 63 for how to adjust the

steering wheel.
7.Maintain a Proper Sitting
Position
After all occupants have adjusted their seats and put on seat belts, it is
very important that they continue to sit upright, with their bodies well
back in their seats and both feet on
the floor, until the vehicle is parked and the engine is off.
Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward, or puts one or both feet up, their chance of
injury during a crash is greatly

increased.

In addition, if an occupant is out of
position in the front seat, they can be seriously or fatally injured by
striking interior parts of the vehicle,
or by being struck by an inflating

airbag.
Remember, to get the best
protection from your vehicle's
airbags and other safety features,
you must sit properly and wear your seat belt properly.
Driver and Passenger Safety Sitting improperly or out of
position can result in serious
injury or death in a crash.
Always sit upright, well back in
the seat, with your feet on the

floor.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t