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The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the
mother. When a safety belt is worn properly, it's more
likely that the fetus won't be hurt in a crash. For
pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective is wearing them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
To learn how to wear the right front passenger's safety
belt properly, see ªDriver Positionº earlier in this section.
The right front passenger's safety belt works the same
way as the driver's safety belt
-- except for one thing.
If you ever pull the lap portion of the belt out all the
way, you will engage the child restraint locking feature.
If this happens, just let the belt go back all the way and
start again.
Air Bag Systems
This part explains the frontal and side impact air
bag systems.
Your vehicle has air bags
-- a frontal air bag for the
driver and another frontal air bag for the right front
passenger. Your vehicle also has a side impact air bag
for the driver and another side impact air bag for the
right front passenger. Your vehicle may also have a side
impact air bag for each of the two rear seat outboard
passenger positions.If your vehicle has side impact air bags for each of the
two rear seat outboard passenger positions, it will say
AIR BAG on each side of the rear seatback closest to
the door.Frontal air bags are designed to help reduce the risk
of injury from the force of an inflating frontal air bag.
But these air bags must inflate very quickly to do their
job and comply with federal regulations.
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Here are the most important things to know about the air
bag systems:
CAUTION:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if
you aren't wearing your safety belt
-- even if you
have air bags. Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things
inside the vehicle or being ejected from it. Air
bags are ªsupplemental restraintsº to the safety
belts. All air bags are designed to work with
safety belts but don't replace them.
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
Frontal air bags for the driver and right front
passenger are designed to work only in moderate
to severe crashes where the front of your vehicle
hits something. They aren't designed to inflate
at all in rollover, rear, side or low
-speed frontal
crashes. And, for unrestrained occupants, frontal
air bags may provide less protection in frontal
crashes than more forceful air bags have
provided in the past. Side impact air bags are
designed to inflate only in moderate to severe
crashes where something hits the side of your
vehicle. They aren't designed to inflate in
frontal, in rollover or in rear crashes.
Everyone in your vehicle should wear a safety
belt properly
-- whether or not there's an air bag
for that person.
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The right front passenger's side impact air bag is in the
side of the passenger's seatback closest to the door.The side impact air bags for the rear seat outboard
passenger positions are in the sides of the rear seatback
closest to the doors.
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CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and an
air bag, the bag might not inflate properly or it
might force the object into that person. The path
of an inflating air bag must be kept clear. Don't
put anything between an occupant and an air
bag, and don't attach or put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any other air
bag covering and don't let seat covers block
the inflation path of a side impact air bag.
When should an air bag inflate?
The driver's and right front passenger's frontal air bags
are designed to inflate in moderate to severe frontal or
near
-frontal crashes. But they are designed to inflate
only if the impact speed is above the system's designed
ªthreshold level.º
In addition, your vehicle has ªdual stageº frontal air
bags, which tailor the amount of restraint according to
crash severity. For moderate frontal impacts, these air
bags inflate at a level less than full deployment. For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs.
If the front of your vehicle goes straight into a wall
that doesn't move or deform, the threshold level
for the reduced deployment is about 10 to 16 mph
(16 to 26 km/h), and the threshold level for a full
deployment is about 18 to 24 mph (29 to 38.5 km/h).
The threshold level can vary, however, with specific
vehicle design, so that it can be somewhat above or
below this range.
If your vehicle strikes something that will move or
deform, such as a parked car, the threshold level will be
higher. The driver's and right front passenger's frontal
air bags are not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts, or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
The side impact air bags are designed to inflate in
moderate to severe side crashes. A side impact air bag
will inflate if the crash severity is above the system's
designed ªthreshold level.º The threshold level can vary
with specific vehicle design. Side impact air bags are not
designed to inflate in frontal or near
-frontal impacts,
rollovers or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant. A side impact air bag will only
deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck.
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In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were. For
frontal air bags, inflation is determined by the angle of
the impact and how quickly the vehicle slows down in
frontal and near
-frontal impacts. For side impact air
bags, inflation is determined by the location and severity
of the impact.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. For both
frontal and side impact air bags, the sensing system
triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which inflates
the air bag. The inflator, air bag and related hardware are
all part of the air bag modules inside the steering wheel,
instrument panel and the side of the front seatbacks and
behind the rear seatbacks closest to the door.
How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside
of the vehicle. The air bag supplements the protection
provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the occupant's upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. But the frontal air bags would not help you in many
types of collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts, and
side impacts, primarily because an occupant's motion is
not toward the air bag. Side impact air bags would not
help you in many types of collisions, including frontal
or near frontal collisions, rollovers, and rear impacts,
primarily because an occupant's motion is not toward
those air bags. Air bags should never be regarded as
anything more than a supplement to safety belts, and
then only in moderate to severe frontal or near
-frontal
collisions for the driver's and right front passenger's
frontal air bags, and only in moderate to severe side
collisions for the side impact air bags.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After an air bag inflates, it quickly deflates, so quickly that
some people may not even realize the air bag inflated.
Some components of the air bag module
-- the steering
wheel hub for the driver's air bag, the instrument panel for
the right front passenger's bag, the side of the seatback
closest to the door for the side impact air bags
-- will be
hot for a short time. The parts of the bag that come into
contact with you may be warm, but not too hot to touch.
There will be some smoke and dust coming from the vents
in the deflated air bags. Air bag inflation doesn't prevent
the driver from seeing or being able to steer the vehicle,
nor does it stop people from leaving the vehicle.
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NOTICE:
If you damage the covering for the driver's or
the right front passenger's air bag, or the air bag
covering on the driver's, right front passenger's
or rear seatback, the bag may not work properly.
You may have to replace the air bag module
in the steering wheel, both the air bag module
and the instrument panel for the right front
passenger's air bag, or both the air bag module
and seatback for the side impact air bag. Do not
open or break the air bag coverings.
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle
Air bags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There are parts of the air bag systems in several places
around your vehicle. Your dealer and the service manual
have information about servicing your vehicle and
the air bag systems. To purchase a service manual,
see ªService and Owner Publicationsº in the Index.
CAUTION:
For up to 10 seconds after the ignition key is
turned off and the battery is disconnected, an air
bag can still inflate during improper service. You
can be injured if you are close to an air bag when
it inflates. Avoid yellow connectors. They are
probably part of the air bag systems. Be sure to
follow proper service procedures, and make sure
the person performing work for you is qualified
to do so.
The air bag systems do not need regular maintenance.
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To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown until
the belt is snug.
Buckle, position and release it the same way as the lap
part of a lap
-shoulder belt. If the belt isn't long enough,
see ªSafety Belt Extenderº at the end of this section.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is positioned
so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.
Rear Seat Passengers
It's very important for rear seat passengers to buckle up!
Accident statistics show that unbelted people in the rear
seat are hurt more often in crashes than those who are
wearing safety belts.
Rear passengers who aren't safety belted can be thrown
out of the vehicle in a crash. And they can strike others
in the vehicle who are wearing safety belts.
Rear Seat Passenger Positions
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Lap-Shoulder Belt
All three rear seating positions have lap
-shoulder belts.
Here's how to wear one properly.
1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don't let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt across
you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt go back
slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt across you
more slowly.2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
If the belt stops before it reaches the buckle, tilt the
latch plate and keep pulling until you can buckle it.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt is not long enough, see ªSafety Belt
Extenderº at the end of this section. Make sure the
release button on the buckle is positioned so you
would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.