2000 FORD MUSTANG Owners Manual

The rotating boot on the front seat belt is designed
to allow rear seat entry/exit. To enter the rear seat:
1. Remove seat belt
from seat belt holder
on top of front seat.
2. Rotate the safety
belt boot rearward.
3. Enter the rear seat in front of the safety belt.
4. Rotate the safety belt boot forward and place the
belt in the belt guide on the seat back to allow use
by the front driver/passenger.
2nd seat/Split-folding rear seat (if equipped)
One or both rear seatbacks can be folded down to
provide additional cargo space.
To lower the
seatback(s) from inside
the vehicle, pull tab to
release seat back and
then fold seatback
down.
When raising the seatback(s), make sure you hear
the seat latch into place.
SAFETY RESTRAINTS
Safety restraints precautions
Always drive and ride with your seatback
upright and the lap belt snug and low across
the hips.
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65

To reduce the risk of injury, make sure
children sit where they can be properly
restrained.
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.
All occupants of the vehicle, including the
driver, should always properly wear their
safety belts, even when an air bag SRS is provided.
It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo
area, inside or outside of a vehicle. In a
collision, people riding in these areas are more
likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not allow
people to ride in any area of your vehicle that is
not equipped with seats and safety belts. Be sure
everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and using a
safety belt properly.
In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is
significantly more likely to die than a person
wearing a seat belt.
Each seating position in your vehicle has a
specific safety belt assembly which is made
up of one buckle and one tongue that are designed
to be used as a pair. 1) Use the shoulder belt on
the outside shoulder only. Never wear the shoulder
belt under the arm. 2) Never swing the safety belt
around your neck over the inside shoulder.
3) Never use a single belt for more than one
person.
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66

Always transport children 12 years old and
under in the back seat and always properly
use appropriate child restraints.
Combination lap and shoulder belts
Before fastening the
safety belt, make sure
the shoulder belt
passes through the belt
holder on the top of
the seatback.
Coupe shown,
convertible is similar
and safety belt must also pass through the belt
holder.
1. Insert the belt
tongue into the proper
buckle (the buckle
closest to the direction
the tongue is coming
from) until you hear a
snap and feel it latch.
Make sure the tongue
is securely fastened in
the buckle.
2. To unfasten, push
the release button and
remove the tongue
from the buckle.
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67

The front and rear outboard safety restraints in the
vehicle are combination lap and shoulder belts. The
front passenger and rear seat outboard safety belts
have two types of locking modes described below:
Vehicle sensitive mode
The vehicle sensitive mode is the normal retractor
mode, allowing free shoulder belt length adjustment
to your movements and locking in response to
vehicle movement. For example, if the driver brakes
suddenly or turns a corner sharply, or the vehicle
receives an impact of approximately 8 km/h (5 mph)
or more, the combination safety belts will lock to
help reduce forward movement of the driver and
passengers.
The seat belt system can also be made to lock
manually by quickly pulling on the shoulder belt.
Automatic locking mode
In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically
pre-locked. The belt will still retract to remove any
slack in the shoulder belt.
The automatic locking mode is not available on the
driver safety belt.
When to use the automatic locking mode
²Anytimea child safety seat is installed in a
passenger front or outboard rear seating position
(if equipped). Children 12 years old and under
should be properly restrained in the rear seat
whenever possible. Refer toSafety Restraints for
ChildrenorSafety Seats for Childrenlater in
this chapter.
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68

How to use the automatic locking mode
²Buckle the
combination lap and
shoulder belt.
²Grasp the shoulder
portion and pull
downward until the
entire belt is
extracted.
²Allow the belt to retract. As the belt retracts, you
will hear a clicking sound. This indicates the
safety belt is now in the automatic locking mode.
How to disengage the automatic locking mode
Disconnect the combination lap/shoulder belt and
allow it to retract completely to disengage the
automatic locking mode and activate the vehicle
sensitive (emergency) locking mode.
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69

Safety belt extension assembly
If the safety belt assembly is too short, even when
fully extended, 20 cm (8 inches) can be added to
the safety belt assembly by adding a safety belt
extension assembly (part number 611C22). Safety
belt extension assemblies can be obtained from your
dealer at no cost.
Use only extensions manufactured by the same
supplier as the safety belt. Manufacturer
identification is located at the end of the webbing on
the label. Also, use the safety belt extension only if
the safety belt is too short for you when fully
extended. Do not use extensions to change the fit of
the shoulder belt across the torso.
Safety belt warning light and indicator
chime
The seat belt warning light illuminates in the
instrument cluster and a chime sounds to remind
the occupants to fasten their safety belts.
Conditions of operation
If... Then...
The driver's safety belt is not
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the ON
position...The safety belt warning light
illuminates1-2 minutes and
the warning chime sounds
4-8 seconds.
The driver's safety belt is
buckled while the indicator
light is illuminated and the
warning chime is sounding...The safety belt warning light
and warning chime turn off.
The driver's safety belt is
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the ON
position...The safety belt warning light
will turn on for 3 seconds
and then turn off. The
indicator chime will remain
off.
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70

Belt minder (if equipped)
The Belt Minder feature is a supplemental warning
to the safety belt warning function. This feature
provides additional reminders to the driver that the
driver's safety belt is unbuckled by intermittently
sounding a chime and illuminating the safety belt
warning lamp in the instrument cluster.
If... Then...
The driver's safety belt is not
buckled approximately 5
seconds after the safety belt
warning light has turned
off...The Belt Minder feature is
activated - the safety belt
warning light illuminates and
the warning chime sounds
for 6 seconds every 30
seconds, repeating for
approximately 5 minutes or
until safety belt is buckled.
The driver's safety belt is
buckled while the safety belt
indicator light is illuminated
and the safety belt warning
chime is sounding...The Belt Minder feature will
not activate.
The driver's safety belt is
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the ON
position...The Belt Minder feature will
not activate.
The purpose of the Belt Minder is to remind
occasional wearers to wear safety belts all of the
time.
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71

The following are reasons most often given for not
wearing safety belts: (All statistics based on U.S.
data)
Reasons
given...Consider...
9Crashes are
rare events9
36 700 crashes occur every day.The
more we drive, the more we are exposed
to9rare9events, even for good drivers.1
in 4 of us will be seriously injured in a
crash during our lifetime.
9I'm not going
far93of4fatal crashes occur within25
miles of home.
9Belts are
uncomfortable9Ford designs its safety belts to enhance
comfort. If you are uncomfortable - try
different positions for the safety belt
upper anchorage and seatback which
should be as upright as possible; this
can improve comfort.
9I was in a
hurry9Prime time for an accident.Belt
Minder reminds us to take a few
seconds to buckle up.
9Seat belts
don't work9Safety belts,when used properly,
reduce risk of deathto front seat
occupants by45% in cars,and by60%
in light trucks.
9Traffic is
light9Nearly 1 of 2 deaths occur in
single-vehicle crashes,many when no
other vehicles are around.
9Belts wrinkle
my clothes9Possibly, but a serious crash can do
much more than wrinkle your clothes,
particularly if you are unbelted.
9The people
I'm with don't
wear belts9
Set the example, teen deaths occur 4
times more often in vehicles with TWO or
MORE people. Children and younger
brothers/sisters imitate behavior they see.
9I have an air
bag9Air bags offer greater protection when
used with safety belts. Frontal airbags
are not designed to inflate in rear and
side crashes or rollovers.
9I'd rather be
thrown clear9Not a good idea,peoplewho are
ejected are 40 times more likely to
DIE.Safety belts help prevent ejection,
WE CAN'T9PICK OUR CRASH9.
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