2002 MAZDA MODEL B2300 child restraint

Important supplemental restraint system (SRS) precautions
The supplemental restraint system
is designed to work with the safety
belt to help protect the driver and
right front passenger from certain
upper body injuries.
WARNING: Air bags DO NOT
inflate slowly or gently and the
risk of injury from a deploying
air bag is greatest close to the
trim covering the air bag
module. Always wear your
safety belt.
WARNING: Airbags have been
known to kill or injure a child
in front facing child restraints.
When placing a child safety
seat in a front seating position
including the center (if
equipped), you should turn off
the passenger air bag switch
after being certain the child is
properly restrained. If the
child safety seat is in the
outboard seating position,
slide the seat all the way back.
WARNING: Do not install a
child seat in a center facing
jump seat.
Seating and Safety Restraints
120

WARNING: Rear facing child seats should NEVER be placed in
the front seats unless the passenger airbag switch is turned off.
SeePassenger airbag ON/OFF switchin this chapter.
WARNING: All occupants of the vehicle, including the driver,
should always properly wear their safety belts, even when an
air bag (SRS) is provided.
WARNING: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) recommends a minimum distance of at least 25 cm (10
inches) between an occupant's chest and the driver air bag
module.
WARNING: Never place your arm or feet over the air bag
module as a deploying air bag can result in serious arm
fractures or other injuries.
WARNING: Never place a rear facing infant seat in the front
seat unless the passenger air bag is turned off.
Steps you can take to properly position yourself away from the airbag:
²Move your seat to the rear as far as you can while still reaching the
pedals comfortably.
²Recline the seat slightly (one or two degrees) from the upright
position.
WARNING: Do not put anything on or over the air bag module
including hands or feet. Placing objects on or over the air bag
inflation area may cause those objects to be propelled by the
air bag into your face and torso causing serious injury.
WARNING: Do not attempt to service, repair, or modify the Air
Bag Supplemental Restraint System or its fuses. See your
authorized Mazda dealership.
Seating and Safety Restraints
121

WARNING: Modifications to the front end of the vehicle,
including frame, bumper, front end body structure, tow hooks
and snow plows may effect the performance of the air bag
sensors increasing the risk of injury. Do not modify the front
end of the vehicle.
WARNING: Additional equipment may effect the performance
of the air bag sensors increasing the risk of injury. Consult your
authorized Mazda dealership before installation of additional
equipment.
WARNING: The front passenger air bag is not designed to offer
protection to an occupant in the center front seating position.
Children and air bags
For additional important safety information, read all information on
safety restraints in this guide.
Seating and Safety Restraints
122

WARNING: Never place a rearward facing child safety restraint
in front of an airbag. Airbags have been known to kill or injure
children in front facing child safety restraints. Whenever
placing a child safety seat in a front seating position (including
center if equipped), turn off the passenger side air bag switch
after being certain the child is properly restrained. If using a
forward facing child safety restraint in the front outboard seat,
slide the seat all the way back, and turn off the passenger air
bag. If using a rear facing child safety seat in the front
outboard seating position, make sure the passenger airbag is
turned off and slide the passenger seat all the way forward
until the safety seat rests on the dashboard. SeePassenger air
bag on/off switchin this chapter.
WARNING: Do not install a child seat in a center facing jump
seat.
WARNING: An air bag can kill or injure a child in a child seat.
Child seats should never be placed in the front seats, unless
passenger air bag switch is turned off. SeePassenger air bag
on/off switchin this chapter.
WARNING: Rear facing child seats should NEVER be placed in
the front seats unless the passenger airbag switch is turned off.
WARNING: Booster seats must be installed only in seating
positions equipped with a combination lap/shoulder belt.
Seating and Safety Restraints
123

WARNING: The safety belts for the driver and right front
passenger seating positions have been specifically designed to
function together with the air bags in certain types of crashes.
When you turn OFF your air bag, you not only lose the
protection of the air bag, you also may reduce the effectiveness
of your safety belt system, which was designed to work with the
air bag. If you are not a person who meets the requirements
stated in the NHTSA/Transport Canada deactivation criteria
turning OFF the air bag can increase the risk of serious injury
or death in a collision.
WARNING: Always use safety belts and child restraints
properly. If a child in a rear facing infant seat must be
transported in front, the passenger air bagmustbe turned OFF.
This is because the back of the infant seat is too close to the
inflating air bag and the risk of a fatal injury to the infant when
the air bag inflates is substantial.
The vast majority of drivers and passengers are much safer with an air
bag than without. To do their job and reduce the risk of life threatening
injuries, air bags must open with great force, and this force can pose a
potentially deadly risk in some situations, particularly when a front seat
occupant is not properly buckled up. The most effective way to reduce
the risk of unnecessary air bag injuries without reducing the overall
safety of the vehicle is to make sure all occupants are properly
restrained in the vehicle, especially in the front seat. This provides the
protection of safety belts and permits the air bags to provide the
additional protection they were designed to provide. If you choose to
deactivate your air bag, you are losing the very significant risk reducing
benefits of the air bag and you are also reducing the effectiveness of the
safety belts, because safety belts in modern vehicles are designed to
work as a safety system with the air bags.
Read all air bag Warning labels in the vehicle as well as the other
important air bag instructions and Warnings in this Owner's Guide.
NHTSA deactivation criteria (excluding Canada)
1.Infant.An infant (less than 1 year old) must ride in the front seat
because:
²the vehicle has no rear seat;
²the vehicle has a rear seat too small to accommodate a rear-facing
infant seat; or
Seating and Safety Restraints
128

²the infant has a medical condition which, according to the infant's
physician, makes it necessary for the infant to ride in the front so that
the driver can constantly monitor the child's condition.
2.Child age 1 to 12.A child age 1 to 12 must ride in the front seat
because:
²the vehicle has no rear seat;
²although children ages 1 to 12 ride in the rear seat(s) whenever
possible, children ages 1 to 12 sometimes must ride in the front
because no space is available in the rear seat(s) of the vehicle; or
²the child has a medical condition which, according to the child's
physician, makes it necessary for the child to ride in the front seat so
that the driver can constantly monitor the child's condition.
3.Medical condition.A passenger has a medical condition which,
according to his or her physician:
²causes the passenger air bag to pose a special risk for the passenger;
and
²makes the potential harm from the passenger air bag in a crash
greater than the potential harm from turning OFF the air bag and
allowing the passenger, even if belted, to hit the dashboard or
windshield in a crash.
WARNING: This vehicle has special energy management safety
belts for the driver and/or right front passenger. These
particular belts are specifically designed to work with air bags
to help reduce the risk of injury in a collision. The energy
management safety belt is designed to give or release additional
belt webbing in some accidents to reduce concentration of force
on an occupant's chest and reduce the risk of certain bone
fractures and injuries to underlying organs. In a crash, if the air
bag is turned OFF, this energy management safety belt might
permit the person wearing the belt to move forward enough to
incur a serious or fatal injury. The more severe the crash, and
the heavier the occupant, the greater the risk is. Be sure the air
bag is turned ON for any person who does not qualify under the
NHTSA deactivation criteria.
Seating and Safety Restraints
129

Transport Canada air bag deactivation criteria (Canada Only)
1.Infant:An infant (less than 1 year old) must ride in the front seat
because:
²my vehicle has no rear seat;
²the rear seat in my vehicle cannot accommodate a rear-facing infant
seat; or
²the infant has a medical condition which, according to the infant's
physician, makes it necessary for the infant to ride in the front seat so
that the driver can monitor the infant's condition.
2.Child age 12 or under:A child age 12 or under must ride in the
front seat because:
²my vehicle has no rear seat;
²although children age 12 and under ride in the rear seat whenever
possible, children age 12 and under have no option but to sometimes
ride in the front seat because rear seat space is insufficient; or
²the child has a medical condition that, according to the child's
physician, makes it necessary for the child to ride in the front seat so
that the driver can monitor the child's condition.
3.Medical condition:A passenger has a medical condition that,
according to his or her physician:
²poses a special risk for the passenger if the air bag deploys; and
²makes the potential harm from the passenger air bag deployment
greater than the potential harm from turning OFF the air bag and
experiencing a crash without the protection offered by the air bag
Transport Canada air bag deactivation criteria (continued)
Seating and Safety Restraints
130

WARNING: This vehicle has special energy management safety
belts for the driver and/or right front passenger. These
particular belts are specifically designed to work with air bags
to help reduce the risk of injury in a collision. The energy
management safety belt is designed to give or release additional
belt webbing in some accidents to reduce concentration of force
on an occupant's chest and reduce the risk of certain bone
fractures and injuries to underlying organs. In a crash, if the air
bag is turned OFF, this energy management safety belt might
permit the person wearing the belt to move forward enough to
incur a serious or fatal injury. The more severe the crash, and
the heavier the occupant, the greater the risk is. Be sure the air
bag is turned ON for any person who does not qualify under the
Transport Canada deactivation criteria.
SAFETY RESTRAINTS FOR CHILDREN
See the following sections for directions on how to properly use safety
restraints for children. Also seeAir bag supplemental restraint system
(SRS)in this chapter for special instructions about using air bags.
Important child restraint precautions
NOTE:You are required by law to use a child-restraint system in the U.S.
and Canada. Check your local and state or provincial laws for specific
requirements regarding the safety of children in your vehicle.
WARNING: 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.
NOTE:Always follow the instructions and warnings that come with any
infant or child restraint you might use.
WARNING: Air bags can kill or injure a child in a child seat.
Never place a rear facing child seat in front of an active air bag.
If you must use a forward facing child seat in the front seat,
position the vehicle seat fully rearward and turn the passenger
air bag off.
Seating and Safety Restraints
131