2002 HONDA ODYSSEY light

This section gives you important
inf ormation about how to protect
yourself and your passengers. It
shows you how to use seat belts
properly. It explains your Supple-
mental Restraint System. And it tells
you how to properly restrain inf ants
and children in your vehicle..........
Important Safety Precautions . 6
.......
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features . 7
.......................................
Seat Belts .8
...........................................
Airbags .9
.....................
Seats & Seat-Backs .10
..........................
Head Restraints .10
..................................
Door Locks .10
........
Pre-Drive Saf ety Checklist . 11
............................
Protecting Adults .12
.....
1. Close and Lock the Doors . 12
...........
2. Adjust the Front Seats . 12 ............
3. Adjust the Seat-Backs . 13
...
4. Adjust the Head Restraints . 14
5. Fasten and Position the Seat .....................................
Belts .15
....
6. Adjust the Steering Wheel . 19
7. Maintain a Proper Sitting ................................
Position .19
.....
Advice f or Pregnant Women . 20
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 20
........................
Protecting Children .22
All Children Must Be ...............................
Restrained .22
Children Should Sit in the Back ...........................................
Seat .23
The Passenger’s Front Airbag Poses Serious Risks to ...............................
Children .24
If You Must Drive with Several ...................................
Children .26
If a Child Requires Close ..................................
Attention .26
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 27
General Guidelines f or Using ...............................
Child Seats .28
.......................
Protecting Inf ants .32
.........
Protecting Small Children . 37 .......
Protecting Larger Children . 41
Using Child Seats with .....................................
Tethers .45
.............................
Using LATCH .47
Additional Inf ormation About Your .................................
Seat Belts .49
..
Seat Belt System Components . 49
......................
Lap/Shoulder Belt .49
Automatic Seat Belt .............................
Tensionners .51
...............
Seat Belt Maintenance . 52
Additional Inf ormation About Your .....................................
Airbags .53
........................
SRS Components .53
How Your Front Airbags .........................................
Work .53
How Your Side Airbags .........................................
Work .55
How the SRS Indicator Light .......................................
Works .55
How the Side Airbag Cutof f ...........
Indicator Light Works . 56
.............................
Airbag Service .58
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 58
.............
Carbon Monoxide Hazard . 59
...................................
Saf ety Labels .60
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Driver and Passenger Saf ety5

Your seat belt system also
includes a light on the
instrument panel to remind you and
your passengers to f asten your seat
belts.
Seat belts are the single most
effectivesafetydeviceforadultsand
larger children. (Inf ants and smaller
children must be properly restrained
in child seats.)
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags. Foryoursafety,andthesafetyof
your passengers, your vehicle is
equipped with seat belts in all seating
positions. In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces require you to
wear seat belts.
Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle’s built-in saf ety f eatures.
When properly worn, seat belts:
Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including f rontal,
side, and rear impacts and
rollovers. Help keep you f rom being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against other occupants.
Keep you f rom being thrown out
of the vehicle.
Help keep you in a good position
should the airbags ever deploy. A
good position reduces the risk of
injury f rom an inf lating airbag, and
allows you to get the best
advantage f rom the airbag.
Of course, seat belts cannot
completely protect you in every
crash.Butinmostcases,seatbelts
can reduce your risk of serious
injury. Always wear
your seat belt, and make sure you
wear it properly.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Seat Belts
Why Wear Seat Belt s
What you should do:
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
8
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
if you have airbags.
Be sure you and your
passengers always wear seat
belts and wear them properly.

The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver and other adult
occupants.
These instructions also apply to
children who have outgrown child
seats and are large enough to wear
lap/shoulder belts. (See page f or
important additional guidelines on
how to properly protect larger
children.)Your vehicle has a door and tailgate
monitor light on the instrument
panel to indicate when a specif ic
door or the tailgate is not tightly
closed. Af ter everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors and
tailgate are closed and locked.
For security, locked doors can
prevent an outsider f rom
unexpectedly opening a door when
you come to a stop.
See page f or how to lock the
doors. For saf ety, locking the doors reduces
the chance that a passenger,
especially a child, will open a door
while the vehicle is moving and
accidentally f all out. It also reduces
the chance of someone being thrown
out of the vehicle during a crash.
Any driver who sits too close to the
steering wheel is at risk of being
seriously injured or killed by striking
the steering wheel or f rom being
struck by an inflating front airbag
during a crash.
41
82
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
Introduction A djust the Front Seats
Close and L ock the Doors
1. 2.
12

CONT INUED
To unlock the belt, push the red
PRESSbuttononthebuckle. To fasten the belt, insert the latch
plate into the buckle, then tug on the
belt to make sure the buckle is
latched.
Guide the belt across your body so
that it retracts completely. After
exiting the vehicle, be sure the belt
is out of the way and will not get
closed in the door.
All seat belts have an emergency
locking retractor. In normal driving,
the retractor lets you move f reely in
your seat while it keeps some
tension on the belt. During a collision
or sudden stop, the retractor
automatically locks the belt to help
restrain your body.
Your vehicle has two types of lap/
shoulder belts. The center position
of the third seat has a combination of
a lap belt and a shoulder belt. For
maximum saf ety, they are designed
to be used together.
All other seating positions have a
one-piece lap/shoulder belt. This
seat belt goes over your shoulder,
across your chest and across your
hips.
Your seat belt system includes lap/
shoulder belts in all seven seating
positions. The f ront seat belts are
also equipped with automatic seat
belt tensioners.
The seat belt system also
includes a light on the
instrument panel to remind you and
your passengers to f asten your belts.
If the driver’s seat belt is not
fastened before the ignition is turned
ON (II), the light will come on and a
beeper will also sound. The beeper
will stop af ter a f ew seconds, but the
light will stay on until the driver’s
seat belt is f astened. Seat Belt System Components L ap/Shoulder Belt
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety49

The tensioners are designed to
activate primarily in f rontal collisions.
The tensioners are independent of
the airbag system, so they can be
activated during a collision that
might not cause the airbags to
deploy. In this case, the airbags
would not be needed but the
additional seat belt tension can be
helpf ul.
The tensioners will be activated in a
collision severe enough to cause the
f ront airbags to inf late.
When the tensioners are activated,
the seat belts will remain tight until
they are unbuckled in the normal
way.The SRS indicator light will
come on if there is a
problem with your automatic seat
belt tensioners (see page ).
For added protection, the f ront seat
belts are equipped with automatic
seat belt tensioners. When activated,
the tensioners immediately tighten
the belts to help hold the driver and
a f ront passenger in place. 55
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
A utomatic Seat Belt T ensioners
51

Your Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) includes:Two f ront airbags. The driver’s
airbag is stored in the center of
the steering wheel; the f ront
passenger’sairbagisstoredinthe
dashboard. Both are marked ‘‘SRS
AIRBAG.’’
Automatic seat belt tensioners
(see page ).
Sensors that can detect a
moderate to severe frontal
collision. An indicator light on the
instrument panel that alerts you to
a possible problem with the
system (see page ).
Emergency backup power in case
your vehicle’s electrical system is
disconnected in a crash. A sophisticated electronic system
that continually monitors and
records inf ormation about the
sensors, the control unit, the
airbag activators, and driver and
passenger seat belt use when the
ignition is ON (II).
If you ever have a moderate to
severe f rontal collision, the sensors
will detect the vehicle’s rapid
deceleration. If the rate of
deceleration is high enough, the
control unit will instantly inf late the
f ront airbags.
41
55
CONT INUED
SRS Components
How Your Front A irbags Work
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
53

Your vehicle is equipped with side
airbags f or the driver and a f ront
seat passenger. The airbags are
stored in the outer edges of the f ront
seat-backs, and both are marked
‘‘SIDE AIRBAG.’’If you ever have a moderate to
severe side impact, the sensors will
detect rapid deceleration and signal
the control unit to instantly inf late
either the driver’s or the passenger’s
side airbag.
Only one airbag will deploy during a
side impact. If the impact is on the
passenger’s side, the passenger’s
side airbag will deploy even if there
is no passenger.
To get the best protection f rom the
side airbags, front seat occupants
should wear their seat belts and sit
upright and well back in their seats.
Thepurposeof theSRS
indicator light is to alert
you to a potential problem with your
f ront airbags. This light will also
alert you to a potential problem with
your automatic seat belt tensioners
(page );oryoursideairbagsor
passenger’s side airbag automatic
cutof f system (page ).
When you turn the ignition ON (II),
this indicator will light brief ly then
go out. This tells you that the system
is working properly. 45
41
CONT INUED
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
How Your Side A irbags Work
How the SRS Indicator L ight
Works
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
55

If the light comes on at any other
time, or does not come on at all, you
should have the system checked by
your dealer. For example:If the SRS indicator light does not
come on after you turn the ignition
ON (II).
If the light stays on after the
engine starts.
If the light comes on or f lashes on
andoff whileyoudrive.
If you see any of these indications,
your f ront or side airbags may not
deploy, your passenger’s side airbag
automatic cut-off system may not
work properly, or your seat belt
tensioners may not work when you
need them. See your Honda dealer
as soon as possible. This light alerts you that
the passenger’s side airbag
has been automatically shut off.
If does not mean there is a problem
with your side airbags. It means that
thesideairbagcutoff systemhas
activated to prevent the side airbag
f rom deploying.
To reduce the risk of injury f rom an
inf lating side airbag, your car has an
automatic cutoff system for the
passenger’s side airbag.
Although Honda does not encourage
children to ride in the f ront, this
system is designed to shut of f the
side airbag if a child leans sideways
and the child’s head is in the side
airbag deployment path.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
How the Side Airbag Cutof f
Indicator L ight Works
56
Ignoring the SRS indicator light
can result in serious injury or
death if the airbags, cutoff
system, or tensioners do not
work properly.
Have your vehicle checked by a
dealer as soon as possible if
the SRS light alerts you to a
potential problem.