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WARNING: All occupants of the vehicle including the driver
should always wear their safety belts even when an air bag SRS
is provided.
How does the side air bag system work?
The side air bag system consists of
the following:
²An inflatable nylon bag (air bag)
with a gas generator concealed
behind the outboard bolster of
the driver and front passenger
seatbacks.
²A special seat cover designed to
allow airbag deployment.
²The same warning light,
electronic control and diagnostic
unit as used for the front air
bags.
²The two side sensors are located
on the lower portion of the
b-pillar.
NOTE:A side air bag, in combination with seat belts, can help reduce
the risk of severe injuries in the event of a significant side impact
collision.
The side air bags are fitted on the outboard side of the seatbacks of the
front seats. In certain lateral collisions, the air bag on the side affected
by the collision will be inflated, even if the respective seat is not
occupied. The air bag was designed to inflate between the door panel
and occupant to further enhance the protection provided occupants in
side impact collisions.
The air bag SRS is designed to activate when the vehicle sustains lateral
deceleration sufficient to cause the sensors to close an electrical circuit
that initiates air bag inflation.
The fact that the air bags did not inflate in a collision does not mean that
something is wrong with the system. Rather, it means the forces were
not of the type sufficient to cause activation. Side air bags are designed
to inflate in side-impact collisions, not roll-over, rear-impact, frontal,
near-frontal or opposite side collisions, unless the collision causes
sufficient lateral deceleration.
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WARNING: Disposing of an air bag can be dangerous. Unless all
safety procedures are followed, injury can result. Ask an
Authorized Mazda Dealer how to safely dispose of an air bag or
how to scrap an air bag equipped vehicle.
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 to use safety restraints for children 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: When possible, always place children under age 12
in the rear seat of your vehicle. Accident statistics suggest that
children are safer when properly restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seating position.
Children and safety belts
If the child is the proper size, restrain the child in a safety seat.
Children who are too large for child safety seats (as specified by your
child safety seat manufacturer) should always wear safety belts.
Follow all the important safety restraint and air bag precautions that
apply to adult passengers in your vehicle.
If the shoulder belt portion of a combination lap and shoulder belt can
be positioned so it does not cross or rest in front of the child's face or
neck, the child should wear the lap and shoulder belt. Moving the child
closer to the center of the vehicle may help provide a good shoulder belt
fit.
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WARNING: Do not leave children, unreliable adults, or pets
unattended in your vehicle.
WARNING: Placing a child, 12 years or younger, in the front
seat is dangerous. The child could be hit by a deploying air bag
and be seriously injured or even killed. A sleeping child is more
likely to lean against the door and be hit by the side air bag in a
moderate collision. Whenever possible, always secure a child, 12
years or younger, in the rear seat, with an appropriate child
restraint system for the child's age and size. Never use a
rear-facing child restraint system in the front seat with an air
bag that could deploy.
Child booster seats
Children outgrow a typical convertible or toddler seat when they weigh
40 pounds and are around 4 years of age. Although the lap/shoulder belt
will provide some protection, these children are still too small for
lap/shoulder belts to fit properly, which could increase the risk of serious
injury.
To improve the fit of both the lap and shoulder belt on children who
have outgrown child safety seats, Mazda recommends use of a
belt-positioning booster.
Booster seats position a child so that safety belts fit better. They lift the
child up so that the lap belt rests low across the hips and the knees
bend comfortably. Booster seats also make the shoulder belt fit better
and more comfortably for growing children.
When children should use booster seats
Children need to use booster seats from the time they outgrow the
toddler seat until they are big enough for the vehicle seat and
lap/shoulder belt to fit properly. Generally this is when they weigh about
80 lbs (about 8 to 12 years old).
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Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions:
²Can the child sit all the way back
against the vehicle seat back with
knees bent comfortably at the
edge of the seat without
slouching?
²Does the lap belt rest low across the hips?
²Is the shoulder belt centered on the shoulder and chest?
²Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
WARNING: Booster seats must be installed only in seating
positions equipped with a combination lap/shoulder belt.
Types of booster seats
There are two types of belt-positioning booster seats:
²Those that are backless.
If your backless booster seat has a
removable shield, remove the
shield and use the lap/shoulder
belt. If a seating position has a
low seat back and no head
restraint, a backless booster seat
may place your child's head (top
of ear level) above the top of the
seat. In this case, use a
high-backed booster seat.
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SAFETY SEATS FOR CHILDREN
Child and infant or child safety seats
Use a safety seat that is recommended for the size and weight of the
child. Carefully follow all of the manufacturer's instructions with the
safety seat you put in your vehicle. If you do not install and use the
safety seat properly, the child may be injured in a sudden stop or
collision.
When installing a child safety seat:
²Review and follow the information
presented in theAir Bag
Supplemental Restraint System
section in this chapter.
²Use the correct safety belt buckle
for that seating position (the
buckle closest to the direction the
tongue is coming from).
²Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle until you hear a
snap and feel it latch. Make sure
the tongue is securely fastened in
the buckle.
WARNING: Do not install a
child seat in a center facing
jump seat.
²Keep the buckle release button pointing up and away from the safety
seat, with the tongue between the child seat and the release button,
to prevent accidental unbuckling.
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²Place seat back in upright position.
²Put the safety belt in the automatic locking mode. Refer toAutomatic
locking mode(passenger side front seat).
Mazda recommends the use of a child safety seat having a top tether
strap. Install the child safety seat in a seating position which is capable
of providing a tether anchorage. For more information on top tether
straps, refer toAttaching child safety seats with tether straps.
WARNING: Carefully follow all of the manufacturer's
instructions included with the safety seat you put in your
vehicle. If you do not install and use the safety seat properly,
the child may be injured in a sudden stop or collision.
Installing child safety seats in combination lap and shoulder belt
seating positions
The rear seat head restraints must be removed when using a child
seat.
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, move the seat all the way back.
1. Position the child safety seat in
a seat with a combination lap
and shoulder belt.
WARNING: Children 12 and under should be properly
restrained in the rear seat whenever possible, the back seat
environment is generally safer.
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Attaching child safety seats with tether straps
Most new forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap which
goes over the back of the seat and hooks to an anchoring point. Tether
straps are available as an accessory for many older safety seats. Contact
the manufacturer of your child seat for information about ordering a
tether strap.
The rear seating positions of your vehicle are equipped with built-in
tether strap anchors located behind the seats as described below.
The tether anchors in your vehicle are located on the roof panel in the
cargo area.
The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions:
WARNING: Attach the tether
strap only to the appropriate
tether anchor as shown. The
tether strap may not work
properly if attached
somewhere other than the
correct tether anchor.
1. Position the child safety seat on the passenger seat cushion.
2. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.
NOTE:For vehicles with adjustable head restraints, route the tether
strap under the head restraint and between the head restraint posts,
otherwise route the tether strap over the top of the seatback.
NOTE:For vehicles with adjustable head restraints, route the tether
strap over the top of the seatback.
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3. Locate the correct anchor for
the selected seating position.
NOTE:There are three tether
anchors located on the headliner at
the rear of the vehicle.
WARNING: If the tether strap
is clipped incorrectly, the child
safety seat may not be
retained properly in the event
of a collision. If the safety seat
is not anchored properly, the
risk of a child being injured in
a collision greatly increases.
4. Clip the tether strap to the
anchor as shown.
The arrow in the above graphic
points toward the front of the
vehicle.
5. Refer to theInstalling child
safety seats in combination
lap and shoulder belt seating
positionssection of this chapter
for further instructions to
secure the child safety seat.
6. Tighten the child safety seat
tether strap according to the
manufacturer's instructions.
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