Page 109 of 264
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
Before fastening the
safety belt, make sure
the shoulder belt
passes through the belt
guide on the top of the
seatback.
Coupe shown,
convertible is similar
and safety belt must also pass through the belt
guide.
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
109
Page 110 of 264
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:
Energy Management Feature
²This vehicle has a safety belt system with an
energy management feature at the front seating
positions to help further reduce the risk of injury
in the event of a head-on collision.
²This safety belt system has a retractor assembly
that is designed to pay out webbing in a
controlled manner. This feature is designed to
help reduce the belt force acting on the
occupant's chest.
After any vehicle collision, the safety belt
system at all outboard seating positions
(except driver, which has no ªautomatic locking
retractorº feature) 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 safety belts should be
checked for proper function.
BELT AND RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MUST
BE REPLACED if the safety belt assembly
ªautomatic locking retractorº feature or any other
safety belt function is not operating properly when
checked according to the procedures in Workshop
Manual.
Seating and Safety Restraints
110
Page 111 of 264
Failure to replace the Belt and Retractor
assembly could increase the risk of injury in
collisions.
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 safety 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
²Any timea 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
111
Page 112 of 264
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.
Seating and Safety Restraints
112
Page 113 of 264
How to disengage the automatic locking mode
Ford Motor Company 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.
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 and rear outboard seat belt
systems 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 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.
Seating and Safety Restraints
113
Page 114 of 264
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.
BeltMinder
The BeltMinder 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 BeltMinder 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 BeltMinder feature will not
activate.
Seating and Safety Restraints
114
Page 115 of 264
If... Then...
The driver's safety belt is
buckled before the
ignition switch is turned
to the ON position...The BeltMinder feature will not
activate.
The purpose of the BeltMinder is to remind
occasional wearers to wear safety belts all of the
time.
The following are reasons most often given for not
wearing safety belts: (All statistics based on U.S.
data)
Reasons given... Consider...
ªCrashes are rare eventsº36 700 crashes occur every
day.The more we drive, the
more we are exposed to ªrareº
events, even for good drivers.1
in 4 of us will be seriously
injured in a crash during our
lifetime.
ªI'm not going farº3of4fatal crashes occur
within25miles of home.
ªBelts are uncomfortableº We design our 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.
ªI was in a hurryºPrime time for an accident.
BeltMinder reminds us to take a
few seconds to buckle up.
ªSeat belts don't workºSafety belts,when used
properly,reduce risk of death
to front seat occupants by45%
in cars,and by60% in light
trucks.
ªTraffic is lightºNearly 1 of 2 deaths occur in
single-vehicle crashes,many
when no other vehicles are
around.
Seating and Safety Restraints
115
Page 116 of 264
Reasons given... Consider...
ªBelts wrinkle my clothesº Possibly, but a serious crash
can do much more than wrinkle
your clothes, particularly if you
are unbelted.
ªThe people I'm with
don't wear beltsºSet 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.
ªI have an air bagº Air bags offer greater protection
when used with safety belts.
Frontal airbags are not designed
to inflate in rear and side
crashes or rollovers.
ªI'd rather be thrown
clearºNot a good idea.Peoplewho
areejected are 40 times
more likely to DIE.Safety
belts help prevent ejection, WE
CAN'T ªPICK OUR CRASHº.
Do not sit on top of a buckled safety belt to
avoid the Belt Minder chime. Sitting on the
safety belt will increase the risk of injury in an
accident. To disable (one-time) or deactivate the
Belt Minder feature please follow the directions
stated below.
One time disable
Any time the safety belt is buckled and then
unbuckled during an ignition ON cycle, BeltMinder
will be disabled for that ignition cycle only.
Deactivating/activating the BeltMinder feature
Read steps1-9thoroughly before proceeding
with the deactivation/activation programming
procedure.
Seating and Safety Restraints
116
