2002 SUBARU LEGACY Owners Manual

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags1-19
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If an accident occurs, this can increase the risk or severity of injury. Keep the lap belt as low as possible on your hips. In a colli-
sion, this spreads the force of the lap belt over stronger hipbones instead of across the weaker abdomen. Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when the occupant sits
well back and upright in the seat. To reduce the risk of sliding un-der the seatbelt in a collision, the front seatbacks should be al-ways used in the upright position while the vehicle is running. Ifthe front seatbacks are not used in the upright position in a colli-
sion, the risk of sliding under the lap belt and of the lap belt slid-ing up over the abdomen will increase, and both can result in se-rious internal injury or death. Do not put cushions or any other materials between occupants
and seatbacks or seat cushions. If you do so, the risk of slidingunder the lap belt and of the lap belt sliding up over the abdomenwill increase, and both can result in serious internal injury ordeath.
HS0231
Never place the shoulder belt under the arm or behind the back.
HS0230
Always wear the
seatbelts correctly.
Adjust the seatback to upright position. Sit well back and upright.
CAUTION
Metallic parts of the seatbelt can become very hot in a vehicle that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn an oc-cupant. Do not touch such hot parts until they cool.

1-20
Front seatbelts
OM-H0044OM-H0043
1. Adjust the seat position:
Driver’ s seat: Adjust the seatback to the upright position. Move the
seatback as far from the steering wheel as practical while still main-
taining full vehicle control.Front passenger ’s seat: Adjust the seatback to the upright position.
Move the seat as far back as possible.
2. Sit well back in the seat.
3. Pick up the tongue plate and pull the belt out slowly. Do not let it
get twisted. If the belt stops before reaching the buckle, return the
belt slightly and pull it out more slowly. If the belt still cannot be
unlocked, let the belt retract slightly after giving it a strong pull, thenpull it out slowly again.
4. Insert the tongue plate into the buckle until you hear a click.
5. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the shoulder belt. And placethe lap belt as low as possible on your hips, not on your waist. n Adjusting the front seat shoulder belt anchor height
WARNING
When wearing the seatbelts, make sure the shoulder portion of the webbing does not pass over your neck. If it does, adjust the
seatbelt anchor to a lower position. Placing the shoulder beltover the neck may result in neck injury during sudden braking orin a collision.

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HB1029BB
The shoulder belt anchor height should be adjusted to the position
best suited for you. To lower the anchor height, push the release but-
ton and slide the anchor down. To raise the anchor height, slide the
anchor up. Pull down on the anchor to make sure that it is locked inplace.
Always adjust the anchor height so that the shoulder belt passes over the middle of the shoulder without touching the neck. nUnfastening the seatbelt
HB0303
Push
Push the button on the buckle.
Before closing the door, make sure that the belts are retracted prop-
erly to avoid catching the belt webbing in the door.

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Rear seatbelts (except rear center seatbelt on wagon)
OM-H0044OM-H0043
1. Sit well back in the seat.
2. Pick up the tongue plate and pull the belt out slowly. Do not let it
get twisted. If the belt stops before reaching the buckle, return the
belt slightly and pull it out more slowly. If the belt still cannot be
unlocked, let the belt retract slightly after giving a strong pull on it,
then pull it out slowly again.
3. Insert the tongue plate into the buckle until you hear a click.
4. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the shoulder belt. And placethe lap belt as low as possible on your hips, not on your waist. nUnfastening the seatbelt
HB0303
Push
Push the button on the buckle.
Before closing the door, make sure that the belts are retracted prop-

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erly to avoid catching the belt webbing in the door. Rear center seatbelt on wagon model
WARNING
Fastening the seatbelt with the webbing twisted can increase
the risk or severity of injury in an accident. When fastening the
belt after it is pulled out from the retractor, especially wheninserting the connector ’s tongue plate into the mating buckle (on
right-hand side), always check that the webbing is not twisted. Be sure to fasten both tongue plates to the respective
buckles. If the seatbelt is used only as a shoulder belt (with theconnector ’s tongue plate not fastened to the connector ’s buckle
on the right-hand side), it cannot properly restrain the wearer in
position in an accident, possibly resulting in serious injury ordeath.
HB1031BA
HB1030BA

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HS1017BB
HB1032BA
1. Pull out the seatbelt slowly from the overhead retractor.
HB1033BA
2. After confirming that the webbing is not twisted, insert the connec-1. Center seatbelt tongue
plate
2. Connector (tongue)
3. Connector (buckle)
4. Center seatbelt buckle

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tor (tongue) attached at the webbing end into the buckle on the right-
hand side until a click is heard. If the belt stops before reaching the
buckle, return the belt slightly and pull it out more slowly. If the belt
still cannot be unlocked, let the belt retract slightly after giving it a
strong pull, then pull it out slowly again.
HB1034BA
3. Insert the center seatbelt tongue plate in the center seatbelt buckle
marked “CENTER” on the left-hand side until it clicks. To make the lap
part tight, pull up on the shoulder belt. And place the lap belt as lowas possible on your hips, not on your waist.
HS1019BA

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nUnfastening the seatbelt
HS0317
Push
Push the release button of the center seatbelt buckle (on the left-hand side) to unfasten the seatbelt. NOTE When the seatback is folded down for greater luggage space, it is
necessary to disconnect the connector. CAUTION
Do not allow the retractor to roll up the seatbelt too quickly.
Otherwise, the metal tongue plates may hit against the trim,resulting in damaged trim. Have the seatbelt fully rolled up so that the tongue plates are
neatly stored. A hanging tongue plate can swing and hit againstthe trim during driving, causing damage to the trim.