1999 HONDA ODYSSEY Owners Manual

Protecting Adults

If necessary, pull up on the belt again
to remove

any slack from the
shoulder part, then check that the
belt rests across the center of your chest and over your shoulder. Thisspreads the forces of a crash over
the strongest bones in your upper
body. If the seat belt touches or crosses
your neck, or if it crosses your arm instead of your shoulder, you need toadjust the seat belt anchor height.

RELEASEBUTTON

The front seats and middle row seats have adjustable seat belt anchors. Toadjust the height of a seat belt
anchor, press the release button and slide the anchor up or down as
needed (it has four positions). Never place the shoulder portion of a
lap/shoulder belt under your arm or
behind your back. This could cause
very serious injuries in a crash.

Driver and Passenger Safety

Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned before
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Protecting Adults

Using the Lap/Shoulder Belt in the
Center Position of the Third Seat

METAL PLATE
Unlatch the metal plate of the
shoulder belt from the anchor on the
ceiling and extend the belt by pulling
the metal plate. METAL
HOOK

LATCH PLATE

Attach the metal hook on the edge of the shoulder belt to the metal loop
on the latch plate of the lap belt
marked CENTER. Make sure theshoulder belt is securely attached
and it is not twisted. A twisted belt
can cause serious injuries in a crash. Insert the latch plate of the lap belt
into the buckle marked CENTER. If
the belt is too short, hold the latch
plate at a right angle and pull on the
plate to extend the belt. Then insert
the latch plate into the buckle, and
tug on the lap and shoulder belts to
make sure the belt is securely latched.
Driver and Passenger Safety
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Protecting Adults

Position the lap belt as low as
possible across your hips, then pull
on the loose end of the lap belt for a snug but comfortable fit. This lets
your strong pelvic bones take the force of a crash and reduces thechance of internal injuries. If necessary, pull up on the shoulder
belt again to remove any slack from
the shoulder belt, then check that
the belt rests across the center of
your chest and over your shoulder.
This spreads the forces of a crash over the strongest bones in your
upper body.

Never place the shoulder portion of a

lap/shoulder belt under your arm or
behind your back. This could cause

very serious injuries in a crash.
If a Seat Belt Doesn 't Work Properly
If a seat belt does not seem to work
as it should, it may not protect the

occupant in a crash. No one should
sit in a seat with an inoperative seat

belt. Anyone using a seat belt that is
not working properly can be seriously injured or killed. Have your
Honda dealer check the belt as soon
as possible.
See page 45 for additional
information about your seat belt system and how to take care of your

belts.

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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 72 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, well back in their seats,
with their 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 sideways,
or puts one or both feet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is
greatly increased.
In addition, an occupant who is out of
position in the front seat 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

Protecting Adults

Advice for Pregnant Women
Because protecting the mother is the
best way to protect her unborn child, a pregnant woman should always
wear a seat belt whenever she drives or rides in a vehicle.
Remember to keep the lap portion of
the belt as low as possible across
your hips. Pregnant women should also sit
upright arid as far back as possible from the steering wheel ordashboard. This will reduce the risk
of injuries to both the mother and
her unborn child that can be caused
by a crash or an inflating airbag.
Each time you have a check-up, ask
your doctor if it's okay for you to drive. Additional Safety Precautions Never let passengers ride in the

cargo area or on top of a folded-

down back seat. All passengers

must sit in locked, upright seats
and be properly restrained by seat

belts.
Passengers should not stand up or

change seats while the vehicle is

moving. A passenger who is not
wearing a seat belt during a crash or emergency stop can be thrown
against the inside of the vehicle,
against other occupants, or out of
the vehicle.
Two people should never use the

same seat belt. If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a

crash.

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Protecting Adults
Do not put any accessories on seat

belts. Devices intended to improve
occupant comfort or reposition the
shoulder part of a seat belt, can
severely compromise the
protective capability of seat belts and increase the chance of serious
injury in a crash. Do not place hard or sharp objects
between yourself and an airbag.
Carrying hard or sharp objects on
your lap, or driving with a pipe or other sharp object in your mouth,
can result in injuries if your
airbags inflate.
Keep your hands and arms away

from the airbag covers. If your
hands or arms are close to the SRS
covers in the center of the steering wheel and on top of the
dashboard, they could be injured if
the airbags inflate.

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Protecting Children

Children depend on adults to protect
them. However, despite their best intentions, many parents and other
adults may not know how to properly
protect young passengers.
So if you have children, or if you ever
need to drive with a grandchild or other children in your vehicle, besure to read this section. All Children Must Be Restrained
Each year, many children are injured
or killed in vehicle crashes because
they are either unrestrained or not properly restrained. In fact, vehicleaccidents are the number one cause
of death of children ages 12 and
under.
To reduce the number of child deaths and injuries, every state and
Canadian province requires that
infants and children be restrained
whenever they ride in a vehicle.

Any child who is too small to wear a
seat belt should be properly

restrained in a child seat. (See page
26 .)

A larger child should always be
restrained with a seat belt. (See page
39 .)

Driver and Passenger Safety
Children who are unrestrained
or improperly restrained can be

seriously injured or killed in a

crash.

Any child too small for a seat

belt should be properlyrestrained in a child seat. A
larger child should be properly
restrained with a seat belt.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Protecting Children

Children Should Sit in the Back

Seat

According to accident statistics, children of all ages and sizes aresafer when they are restrained in the
back seat, not the front seat. The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport Canada recommend that all children
ages 12 and under be properly
restrained in a back seat.
In a back seat, children are less
likely to be injured by striking hard interior parts during a collision or
hard braking. Also, children cannot be injured by an inflating airbag
when they ride in the back.
The Passenger's Airbag Poses

Serious Risks to Children
Airbags have been designed to help protect adults in a moderate to severe frontal collision. To do this,
the passenger's airbag is quite large, and it inflates with tremendous

speed.

Infants

Never put a rear-facing child seat in the front seat of a vehicle equipped

with a passenger's airbag. If the

airbag inflates, it can hit the back of
the child seat with enough force to
kill or very seriously injure an infant.
Small Children

Placing a forward-facing child seat in the front seat of a vehicle equipped
with a passenger's airbag can be

hazardous. If the vehicle seat is too
far forward, or the child's head is thrown forward during a collision, an
inflating airbag can strike the child
with enough force to kill or very seriously injure a small child.

Larger Children
Children who have outgrown child

seats are also at risk of being injured
or killed by an inflating passenger's

airbag. Whenever possible, larger

children should sit in a back seat,
properly restrained with a seat belt. (See page 39 for important
information about protecting larger
children.)

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