1998 HONDA PRELUDE ECU

Protecting Children
If it is necessary to put a forward-
facing child seat in the front, move
the vehicle seat as far to the rear as
possible, be sure the child seat is
firmly secured to the car, and that
the child is properly strapped in the
seat.
Child Seat Installation
The lap/shoulder belts in the back
and front passenger seating positions
have a locking mechanism that must be activated to secure a child seat.
The following pages provide instructions and tips on how tosecure a forward-facing child seat
with this type of seat belt.
1. With the child seat in the desiredseating position, route the belt
through the child seat according to the seat maker's instructions,then insert the latch plate into the
buckle.

Driver and Passenger Safety

Improperly placing a forward-
facing child seat in the front seat can result in serious injury
or death if the airbags inflate.
If you must place a forward-
facing child seat in front, move
the vehicle seat as far back as possible and properly restrain
the child.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Children

2. To activate the lockable retractor, slowly pull the shoulder part of the
belt all the way out until it stops, then let the belt feed back into the
retractor (you might hear a
clicking noise as the belt retracts).
3. After the belt has retracted, tug on it. If the belt is locked, you will not
be able to pull it out. If you can pull the belt out, it is not locked and
you will need to repeat these steps.
4. After confirming that the belt is

locked, grab the shoulder part of

the belt near the buckle and pullup to remove any slack from the

lap part of the belt. Remember, if

the lap part of the belt is not tight,

the child seat will not be secure. It
may help to put weight on the

child seat, or push on the back of

the seat while pulling up on the

belt. 5. Push and pull the child seat
forward and from side to side to
verify that it is secure enough to stay upright during normal driving
maneuvers. If the child seat is not secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract fully, then repeat these
steps.

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

Protecting Children

Physical Size

Physically, a child must be large
enough for the lap/shoulder belt to
properly fit over their hips, chest, and shoulder (see page 14). If the
seat belt does not fit properly, the
child should not sit in the front.

Maturity

To safely ride in front, a child must be able to follow the rules, including
sitting properly and wearing their

seat belt properly throughout a ride. If you decide that a child can safely
ride up front, be sure to:
Carefully read the owner's manual,
and make sure you understand all seat belt instructions and all safety
information. Move the vehicle seat to the rear-
most position.
Have the child sit up straight with
their back against the seat and
their feet on or near the floor. Check that the child's seat belt is
properly positioned and secured.
Closely supervise the child. Even
mature children sometimes need
to be reminded to fasten their seat
belt or sit properly.
Using Child Seats with Tethers

Your car has two attachment points on the rear shelf for securing a
tether-style child seat to the car.

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

Protecting Children

Since a tether can provide additional
security, we recommend using a
tether whenever one is required or available. (Tethers are required in
Canada. U.S. owners may check with
the child seat maker to determine
whether a tether is available for a particular child seat.)
To attach a tether to your car: 1. Using the illustration on page 38 , locate the attachment point you
want to use.
2. Remove the plug with a small flat- tipped screwdriver or a fingernail
file.
3. Install the anchor plate and
mounting hardware. The
hardware is available for purchasefrom your Honda dealer (part
number 82410-SE3-C01). For Canadian models, the hardware is
supplied with the vehicle.
When installing tether hardware,
make sure the toothed washer is on
the bottom of the bolt. Tighten the
bolt to:
16 lbf .
ft (22 N .
m,2.2 kgf .
m)

If a torque wrench was not used, see
your Honda dealer as soon as possible to verify proper installation.
To attach the tether to the child seat, follow the child seat maker's
instructions.

If you are not sure how to install the
tether, or you need mounting hardware, contact your Honda dealer.
Driver and Passenger Safety
ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Additional Information About Your Seat Belts

All seat belts have an emergency locking retractor. In normal driving,
the retractor lets you move freely in
your seat while it keeps some
tension on the belt. During a collision or sudden stop, the retractor
automatically locks the belt to help
restrain your body.
The seat belts in all seating positions except the driver's have an additional
locking mechanism that must be activated to secure a child seat. (See
pages 28 and 32 for instructions on
how to secure child seats with this
type of seat belt.)
If the shoulder part of the belt is
pulled all the way out, the locking
mechanism will activate. The belt
will retract, but it will not allow a passenger to move freely. To deactivate the locking
mechanism, unlatch the buckle and
let the seat belt fully retract. To
refasten the belt, pull it out only as
far as needed.
See page 14 for instructions on how
to wear the lap/shoulder belt
properly.

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

Controls Near the Steering Wheel

Make sure the rear window is clear
and you have good visibility before
starting to drive.
The defogger and antenna wires on the inside of the rear window can beaccidentally damaged. When
cleaning the glass, always wipe side
to side.
Steering Wheel Adjustment

See page 15 for important safety

information about how to properly

position the steering wheel.
Make any steering wheel adjustment
before you start driving. To adjust the steering wheel upward
or downward.
1. The lever to tilt the steering wheel is under the steering column to
the left. Push this lever all the way
down.

2. Move the steering wheel to the desired position, making sure the
wheel points toward your chest, not toward your face. Make sure
you can see the instrument panel
gauges and the indicator lights. 3. Push the lever up to lock the
steering wheel in that position.
4. Make sure you have securely locked the steering wheel in place
by trying to move it up and down.

Instruments and Controls
Adjusting the steering wheel
position while driving may
cause you to lose control of the
vehicle and be seriously injured in a crash.
Adjust the steering wheel only
when the vehicle is stopped.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Service Station Procedures

Opening the Hood
1. Shift to Park or Neutral and set the parking brake. Pull the hood
release handle located under the
lower left corner of the dashboard.
The hood will pop up slightly. 2. Standing in front of the vehicle,
put your fingers under the frontedge of the hood to the right of
center. Slide your hand to the left
until you feel the hood latch
handle. Push this handle to the left
until it releases the hood. Lift the

hood.
3. Pull the support rod out of its clip
and insert the end into the hole on
the left side of the hood.
To close the hood, lift it up slightly to remove the support rod from the
hole. Put the support rod back into its holding clip. Lower the hood to
about a foot (30 cm) above the
fender, then let it drop.
After closing the hood, make sure it is securely latched.
Before Driving HOOD RELEASE HANDLE

LATCHCLIP SUPPORT RODProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Carrying Cargo

Load Limit
The maximum load for your vehicle is 700 1b (325kg).
This figure includes the total weight of all occupants, cargo, accessories,
and the tongue weight if you are
towing a trailer.
To figure out how much cargo you can carry: Add up the weight of all occupants.
If you are towing a trailer, add the
tongue weight to the number
above.
Subtract the total from 700 Ib (325
kg).

The final number is the total weight
of cargo you can carry.
Carrying Items in the Passenger
Compartment Store or secure all items that could
be thrown around and hurt someone during a crash. Do not put any items on top of the
rear shelf. They can block your
view and be thrown around the
vehicle during a crash. Be sure items placed on the floor
behind the front seats cannot roll under the seats and interfere with
the driver's ability to operate the pedals, or with the proper operation of the seats. Keep the glove box closed while
driving. If the lid is open, a
passenger could injure their knees during a crash or sudden stop.

Before Driving

Overloading or improper

loading can affect handling and
stability and cause a crash in

which you can be hurt or killed.

Follow all load limits and other

loading guidelines in this

manual.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t