2003 FIAT BARCHETTA airbag

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CAR
You should read this chapter sitting comfortably in
your new Fiat barchetta. This way you can see the parts
described in the manual at a glance and immediately
check what you have just read for yourself.
In short, you will become more familiar with your
Fiat barchetta and its controls and other features. Lat-
er, when you start the engine and join the traffic you
will make a host of other pleasant discoveries.
DASHBOARD ...................................................................... 7
INSTRUMENT PANEL ...................................................... 8
SYMBOLIS ............................................................................. 9
THE FIAT CODE SYSTEM ............................................... 11
ELECTRONIC ALARM ..................................................... 13
IGNITION SWITCH ......................................................... 17
INDIVIDUAL SETTINGS .................................................. 18
SEAT BELTS ......................................................................... 21
TRANSPORTING CHILDREN IN SAFETY ................ 24
PRETENSIONERS ............................................................... 27
INSTRUMENTS ................................................................... 28INDICATOR AND WARNING LIGHTS .................... 30
HEATING AND VENTILATION ................................... 34
MANUAL CLIMATE CONTROL SYSTEM ................. 36
STEERING COLUMN STALKS ....................................... 38
CONTROLS ......................................................................... 40
INTERIOR EQUIPMENT .................................................. 42
DOORS ................................................................................. 44
HOOD ................................................................................... 46
HARD TOP .......................................................................... 49
WIND STOP ........................................................................ 51
BONNET .............................................................................. 53
BOOT .................................................................................... 55
HEADLIGHTS ...................................................................... 55
ABS ......................................................................................... 56
AIRBAG ................................................................................. 58
EOBD SYSTEM .................................................................... 62
CELLULAR PHONE SETUP ............................................. 63
AT THE FILLING STATION ........................................... 64
PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT ......................... 66
For more detailed information, see “Index”.
6

Unleaded petrol
vehicle
Use only unleaded petrol
with RON 95.
Expansion tank
Use only fluid of the type
specified in the section
“Capacities”.
Battery
Jack
See the Owner Hand-
book.Battery
Protect your eyes.
Engine
Use only the lubricant
specified in the section
“Capacities”. Windscreen wiper
Use only the fluid speci-
fied in the section “Capac-
ities”.Brake circuit
Do not exceed the max-
imum fluid level in the
reservoir. Use only the fluid specified
in the section “Capacities”.
Catalytic converter
Do not park over inflam-
mable materials. See the
section “Protecting the emission con-
trol devices”.Power steering
Do not exceed the max-
imum fluid level in the
reservoir. Use only the fluid specified
in the section “Capacities”.
Passenger’s airbag
Do not install child safe-
ty seats facing backwards
on the front passenger seat.Heat shields - belts -
pulleys - fan
Do not touch. Battery
Keep away from children.
10
WARNING SYMBOLSOBLIGATION SYMBOLS

22
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE USE OF THE SEAT
BELTS
All the occupants of the vehicle are
obliged to respect the local traffic laws
regarding the wearing of seat belts.
Make sure the seat belts
are fastened at all times.
You increase the risk of serious in-
jury or death in a collision if you
travel with the belts unfastened.
WARNING
fig. 18
P5S00633m
fig. 19
P5S00748
The webbing must not be
twisted. The upper section
must pass across the shoulder and
chest diagonally. The lower part
must fit closely across the passen-
gers’ hips and not the abdomen, to
prevent them sliding forward. Do
not use devices (clips, clasps etc.)
that prevent the belt adhering
properly to the passenger’s body.
WARNING
Never travel with children
sitting on a passenger’s lap
with a single seat belt to protect
them both.
WARNING
SEVERE DANGER:
if the car has a pas-
senger airbag, do not place the
child seat on the front seat.
WARNING

25
GROUP 0 (fig. 22)
Babies up to 10 kg are to be seated
in a cot type seat supporting the child’s
head facing backwards. This ensures
there is no stress on the child’s neck
in sudden decelerations. The cot is se-
cured with the seat belts. The child
must be strapped to the carrier.GROUP 1 (fig. 23)
Children from 9 kg are to be seated
facing forward in child seats with front
cushions. The vehicle seat belt secures
both seat and child.
fig. 22
P5S00745m
fig. 23
P5S00746m
Child restraint systems
must never be positioned in
the front passenger seat in vehicle’s
equipped with passenger side
airbags. The inflated airbag could
cause fatal injury, regardless of how
severe the crash. Children can trav-
el in the front seat only in cars
equipped with an airbag deactiva-
tion device. In this case, make ab-
solutely sure that the airbag has in
fact been deactivated.
WARNING
The figure is only an exam-
ple. Attain to the instruc-
tions for fastening the specific child
restraint system you are using.
WARNINGThe figure is only an exam-
ple. Attain to the instruc-
tions for fastening the specific child
restraint system you are using.
There are child restraints for
Groups 0 and 1 which are fastened
with the vehicle seat belts by means
an attachment on the seat back.
The child is then secured to the seat
with specific straps. Due to their
weight, child seats can be danger-
ous if they are fitted incorrectly
(e.g. placing a cushion between the
seat and the belts). Always attain
carefully to the specific installation
instructions for the child restraint
system you are using.
WARNING

HAZARD LIGHTS
(red) (flashing)
When the hazard lights
are on.AIRBAG OR
PRETENSIONER
FAILURE (red)
When the system is not working
properly or has been triggered.
SEAT BELTS NOT
FASTENED (red)
When the driver’s seat
belt is not fastened properly. CATALYTIC
CONVERTER HOT
(red) (where fitted)
When the temperature of the cat-
alytic converter is extremely high: the
warning light will go out as soon as the
temperature drops to normal.
32
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f¬
r
When you turn the ignition
key to the MAR position
this light comes on. It should, how-
ever, go out after about four sec-
onds. If the light stays on or comes
on while the car is moving, stop at
once and have the car seen to at a
Fiat Dealership.
WARNING
The lighting of warning
light >when the engine is
running normally indicates a fault
in the ABS system only. In this case,
the braking system will still be ef-
fective without the anti-lock device.
In these conditions EBD system op-
eration can be reduced. Also in this
case we recommend immediately
taking the car to a Fiat Dealership
avoiding sudden braking to have
the system checked.
WARNING

MAIN-BEAM
HEADLIGHTS (blue)
When the main-beam
headlights are turned on.OUTSIDE LIGHTS
(green)
When the side and tail-
lights are turned on.
DIRECTION
INDICATORS
(green) (flashing)
When the direction indicator control
stalk is used.FUEL RESERVE
(amber)
When about 5 litres of
fuel are left in the fuel tank.PASSENGER
SIDE AIRBAG
DEACTIVATED
(amber) (where fitted)
When the passenger side airbag is
deactivated. FIAT CODE (amber)
In three cases (with igni-
tion key at MAR):
1. A single flash - indicates that the
key code has been recognised. The en-
gine can be started.
2. A constant light - indicates that the
key code has not been recognised. To
start the engine, follow the emergency
start-up procedure described in the
“In an emergency” section.
3. A flashing light - indicates that the
car is not protected by the immobilis-
er system. The engine can however be
started.
33
°
RE
3
1
¢F

58
AIR BAG
Description and operation
The front airbag (driver and passen-
ger) is a safety device which is imme-
diately triggered in the event of a front
impact.
It consists of an instantly inflatable
bag housed in a special compartment
located:
– in the centre of the steering wheel
on the driver’s side;
– in the dashboard on the passen-
ger’s side (larger bag).
The front airbag (driver and passen-
ger) is a device which protects the oc-
cupants of the car during a head-on
collision of a medium-high degree. The system was designed to protect
from injury caused by the body crash-
ing to the steering wheel or the dash-
board.
In a collision, an electronic control
unit processes the signals from a de-
celeration sensor and, where required,
inflates the airbag.
The bag inflates instantly and acts as
a soft protective barrier between the
front seat passengers and the struc-
tures in front of them that could cause
injury. The bags deflate immediately af-
terwards.
A passenger not wearing the seat
belt may crash into the bag before it is
fully inflated. In this case, the protec-
tion is considerably decreased.
The airbag, as a consequence, is not
a replacement for the use of seat belts
but rather a complement. We rec-
ommend that seat belts are worn at all
times as prescribed by legislation in Eu-
rope and most other countries world-
wide. In the event of front collisions at low
speed, the restraining action of the
seat belts is sufficient and the airbag
is not inflated.
For impacts against very deformable
or mobile objects (traffic sign poles,
heaps of gravel or snow, parked vehi-
cles), side impacts, wedging under oth-
er vehicles or barriers (e.g. under a
truck or guard rail), the airbag is not
necessary and may even be undesir-
able. In the event of frontal impacts in-
volving, for example, the mudguard
against a guard-rail, the airbags are not
triggered as they would not offer ad-
ditional protection with respect to the
seat belts and may be undesirable.
The fact that the airbag is not trig-
gered in these situations, this does not
signify a malfunction.
fig. 76
P5S00671m

59
AIRBAG PASSENGER SIDE
(where fitted)
The passenger side airbag was de-
signed and calibrated to protect a per-
son wearing seat belts.
When fully inflated, the bag will fill
most of the space between the dash-
board and the passenger. Manual deactivation
The passenger side airbag can be de-
activated if it is absolutely necessary to
carry a child in the front passenger
seat.
Turn the specific switch fig. 77
which can be reached by opening the
passenger side door with the ignition
key. The switch has two positions:
1 - Passenger side airbag on: (posi-
tion ON
P) instrument panel warn-
ing light off. Do not carry children on
the front seat.
2 -Passenger side airbag off: (posi-
tion OFFF) instrument panel warn-
ing light on. A child can be carried on
the front seat with a suitable restraint
system.
The instrument panel warning light
Fwill stay on until the passenger
side airbag is reactivated.
SEVERE DANGER:
if the car has a front
airbag on passenger side, do not
place the child seat on the front
seat.
WARNING
fig. 77
P5S10010m