2001 Mercury Villager Owner's Manuals

The entire seat can be moved to four seating positions and two storage
positions.
Before rearranging the seats, remove any floor mats that might be in the
way, seeRemovable floor matsin this chapter for instructions on
placement of floor mats.
For vehicles equipped with a second row bench seat: If the three
passenger bench seat is moved up to the second row position, the
outside passenger (opposite the driver) should fasten the
standard lap/shoulder belt. The secondary seat belt tongue is not
fastened to the outside bottom of the seat (as does the two
passenger bench seat). This is not required with the three
passenger bench seat since the seat is much wider.
The seat tracks may have grease on them that could stain your clothing
or vehicle fabric surfaces if care is not taken when handling the seats.
A. Three rearward seating positions
B. Limousine seating position (3rd row seat with 2nd row seat removed)
C. Two storage positions
AC
B
Seating and safety restraints
121

To move the seat to another seating or storage position:
1. Lift control (A) to release the
seat cushion and flip the cushion
up. The seat cushion must be
moved to the storage position before
the seat can be moved along the
track.
2. Pull control (B) to move the seat
forward or backward until it locks
into position. The seat cushion
cannot be lowered if the seat is in a
storage position.
A
B
Seating and safety restraints
122

After sliding the seat, check to ensure that both sides of the seat are
locked in position. This must be done before the vehicle is put into
motion in order to prevent unintended movement of the seat.
Every time you adjust any seat, check to be sure that it is
properly latched in the lock position of both seat tracks. If the
seat is not properly latched, it could come loose and increase the risk
of severe injury or death in an accident.
The 3rd row bench seat is not removable.
To remove the 2nd row seat(s):
Use the following instructions for
both bench and bucket seats.
The seat tracks may have grease on
them that could stain your clothing
or vehicle fabric surfaces if care is
not taken when handling the seats.
Fold the seatback flat before
removing each seat. Refer to the
Adjusting 2nd row seatsportion of
this section.
1. (Bench seats only) Disengage the lap/shoulder belt from the seat belt
detach anchor by pushing the release control and lifting upward.
2. From behind the seat, pull up on
the release straps located on each
side of the seat, releasing the rear
floor latches.
3. Lift up the back of the seat to clear the floor latches and then pull the
seat rearward until the front hooks have come out of the floor anchors.
4. Remove the seat. Two people should lift and rotate the seat and
remove it from vehicle.
Seating and safety restraints
123

To install the seat:
The bucket seats are not interchangeable due to the locations of the seat
anchors on the floor of the vehicle. Each seat must be installed in its
original position.
1. Position the seat in the vehicle.
2. Align seat front hooks to front anchors and push forward into place,
lower back of seat into the rear anchors until both rear latches fully
engage into place. Be sure that the seat is locked in place both front and
back.
3. (Bench seats only) Make sure the safety belt is not twisted, then
insert the seat belt tongue into detachable anchor until you hear a ªclickº
and feel the latch engage.
Always latch the vehicle seat to the floor, whether the seat is
occupied or empty. If not latched, the seat may cause injury
during a sudden stop.
SAFETY RESTRAINTS
Safety restraints precautions
Always drive and ride with your seatback upright and the lap
belt snug and low across the hips.
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.
Seating and safety restraints
124

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 safety 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.
Always transport children 12 years old and under in the back
seat and always properly use appropriate child restraints.
Combination lap and shoulder belts
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.
Seating and safety restraints
125

2. To unfasten, push the release
button and remove the tongue from
the buckle.
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.
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.
Seating and safety restraints
126

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
Ford recommends that all safety belt assemblies and attaching
hardware should be inspected by a qualified technician after any
collision. Safety belt assemblies not in use during a collision should also
be inspected and replaced if either damage or improper operation is
noted.
Seating and safety restraints
127

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.
After any vehicle collision, the front passenger outboard seat belt
system must be checked by a qualified technician to verify that
the ªautomatic locking retractorº feature for child seats is still
functioning properly. In addition, all seat belts should be checked for
proper function.
BELT AND RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MUST BE REPLACED if
the seat belt assembly ªautomatic locking retractorº feature or
any other seat belt function is not operating properly when checked
according to the procedures in Workshop Manual.
Failure to replace the Belt and Retractor assembly could
increase the risk of injury in collisions.
Safety belt pretensioner
Your vehicle is equipped with safety belt pretensioners at the driver and
front outboard passenger seating positions.
The safety belt pretensioners are designed to activate only when the
safety belts are fastened during certain frontal or near-frontal collisions.
A safety belt pretensioner tightens the webbing of the lap and shoulder
belts during a crash so that they fit more snugly.
The driver and front outboard passenger safety belt system (including
retractors, buckles and height adjusters) must be replaced if the vehicle
is involved in a collision that activates the safety belt pretensioners.
Refer to theSafety belt maintenancesection in this chapter.
Failure to replace the safety belt assembly under the above
conditions could result in severe personal injuries in the event of
a collision.
Seating and safety restraints
128