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27
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE USE OF THE SEAT
BELTS
The driver is obliged to respect (and
check that the car occupants respect)
all local traffic laws regarding the use
of seat belts.
Always fasten seat belt.
To travel with seat belts
unfastened increases the
risk of serious injury or death in
the event of a crash.
fig. 13
P4E02064
If the seat belt is sub-
jected to high stress, for
example after a collision,
it must be replaced completely
together with the anchors, an-
chor fixing screws and the pre-
tensioner, if the car is equipped
with, in fact, even if the seat belt
does not seem damaged, the seat
belt could have lost its resistance
proprieties.
The belt webbing must
not be twisted, make sure
that it is well stretched
out and fits close to the passen-
ger’s body. The upper section
must pass over the shoulder and
cross the chest diagonally. The
lower section must fit close
across the passenger’s hips and
not the abdomen to prevent
them sliding forward fig. 13. Do
not use devices (clips, fasteners
etc.) to prevent the belt adhering
to the passenger’s body.
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28
Do not travel with a
child sitting on the lap of
a passenger using one
seat belt to protect both (fig. 14).Seat belts are also to be worn by ex-
pectant mothers: the risk of injury in
the case of accident is greatly reduced
for them and the unborn child if they
are wearing a seat belt.
Of course they must position the
lower part of the belt very low down
so that it passes under the abdomen
fig. 15HOW TO KEEP THE SEAT
BELTS IN PROPER WORKING
ORDER AT ALL TIMES
1)
When wearing the seat belts, al-
ways ensure they are not twisted and
are free to wind in and out.
2)Following a serious accident, re-
place the belt being worn at the time,
even if it does not seem damaged.
3)When cleaning the belts, wash
them by hand with water and neutral
soap, rinse them and let them dry in
the shade. Do not use strong deter-
gents, bleach, colouring or any other
chemical substance that could weaken
the fibres.
4) Do not allow the reel mechanisms
to get wet: they are only guaranteed
to work properly if they remain dry.
fig. 14
P4E02065
fig. 15
P4E02066
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29
TRANSPORTING
CHILDREN
IN SAFETY
For optimal protection in the event
of a crash, all passengers must be seat-
ed and wearing adequate restraint sys-
tems.
This is especially relevant for chil-
dren.
A child’s head is larger and heavier
than an adult’s head with respect to
their body weight. Moreover, a child’s
muscular and bone structure is not ful-
ly developed. For these reasons, chil-
dren require specific restraint systems,
different from those required by adult
passengers.
Child’s restraint systems are classi-
fied into the following four weight
groups,
fig. 16:
Group 0 weight 0-10 kg
Group 0 weight 9-18 kg
Group 0 weight 15-25 kg
Group 3 22-36 weight kg.
The groups partially overlap. This is
because there are systems which cov-
er more than one weight group.
Children weighing more than 36 kg
or taller than 1.5 m are, with reference
to restraint systems, considered adults
and can wear normal seat belts.
fig. 16
P4E00197
The seat shown in fig. 16 is suitable
for children weighing between 18-36
kgs.
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30
There are child re-
straints for groups 0 and
1 which are fastened with
the car seat belts by means of 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 dan-
gerous if they are fitted incor-
rectly with a cushion placed be-
tween the seat and the car seat
belts. Always attain carefully to
the specific installation instruc-
tions attached. We recommend seating
children on the rear seat.
This is the most protect-
ed position in the event of a
crash.
GROUP 0
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 secured with the seat
belts, as shown in
fig. 17. The child
must be strapped to the carrier with
its incorporated straps.
GROUP 1
Children from 9 kg are to be seated
facing forward in child seats with front
cushions. The seat belt secures both
seat and child
fig. 18.
fig. 17
P4E00198
fig. 18
P4E00199
The figure is only an ex-
ample. Follow the in-
structions for fastening
the specific child restraint
system you are using.
The figure is only an ex-
ample. Follow the in-
structions for fastening
the specific child restraint system
you are using.
Children from 18 kg up only require
a cushion to lift them
fig. 20. The size of the child’s chest no
longer requires a support to space the
child’s back from the seat back.
Children taller than 1.50 m can wear
seat belts like adults.
fig. 20
P4E00201
The figure is only an ex-
ample. Follow the in-
structions for fastening
the specific child restraint system
you are using.
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The figure is only an ex-
ample. Follow the in-
structions for fastening
the specific child restraint system
you are using.
31
GROUP 2
Children from 15 kg can be secured
directly with the car seat belts. The
child seat has the purpose of posi-
tioning the child correctly with respect
to the seat belt, so that the diagonal
section crosses the child’s chest and
never the throat, and that the hori-
zontal section fits snugly on the child’s
hips and not to the abdomen
fig. 19.
fig. 19
P4E00200
5) Always check the seat belts do
not fit around the child’s throat.
6) While travelling, do not let the
child sit incorrectly or release the
belts.
7) Passengers should never carry
children on their laps. No-one, how-
ever strong they are, can hold a child
in the event of a crash.
8)Replace the child restraint system
after an accident.
A summary of safety precau-
tions to follow when transport-
ing children.
1)
Child restraint systems should be
installed on the rear seat as this is the
most protected area in the car in the
event of a crash.
2)Adhere to the instructions for fas-
tening the specific child restraint which
you are using. These instructions must
be provided by the manufacturer.
Keep the child restraint system instal-
lation instructions with the car docu-
ments and this Handbook. Never use
a child restraint system without in-
stallation instructions.
3) Always check the seat belt is well
fastened by pulling the webbing.
4)Only one child is to be strapped
to each restraint system.
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32
PRETENSIONERS
The pretensioner does not require
any maintenance or lubrication. Any
modification of its original state inval-
idates its efficiency. If, as the result of
exceptional natural occurrences
(floods, sea storms etc.) the device be-
come soaked through with water and
mud, it is essential that it be replaced.
The pretensioner will give maximum
protection when the seat belt adheres
snugly to the wearer’s chest and hips. To render the protective action of
the front seat belts even more effec-
tive, some versions of Fiat Palio are fit-
ted with pretensioners. These devices
“feel” that a violent collision is in
progress via a sensor, and pull back a
few centimeters of webbing. In this
way the pretensioner ensures that the
belt is adhering perfectly to the body
before the belt begins to hold back the
wearer.
When the pretensioner has been
triggered the retractor will lock.
The seat belt cannot be drawn back
up even when guiding it manually.
When the pretensioner is triggered
a small amount of smoke may be pro-
duced. The smoke is not harmful and
does not indicate the beginning of a
fire.
Under no circumstances
should the components of
the pretensioner be tam-
pered with or removed. Any in-
terventions should be carried out
by qualified and authorized per-
sonnel. Always contact a Fiat
Dealership
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52
To return the seat to normal
position
1)
Tip the entire seat backwards.
2) Tip the seat back backwards. Pass
the belts to the side and fasten the seat
back to the retainers. Make sure it is
fastened.
INCREASING THE LUGGAGE
SPACE AREA
1)
Release the seat back by means of
the side levers
A-fig. 58in the direc-
tion of the arrow.
2) Tip forward the seat back, by lat-
erally passing the seat belts, up to rest
it on the rear cushion
fig. 59.
3) Then tip forward the complete
rear seat back
fig. 60, in order to ob-
tain an only loading surface with the
boot floor.
fig. 58
P4E01746
fig. 59
P4E01993
fig. 60
P4E01994
fig. 61
P4E01749
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58
The bag inflates instantly and acts as
a soft protective barrier between the
driver’s body and the structures that
could cause injury. The bag deflate im-
mediately afterwards.
A person not wearing the seat belt
may crash into the bag before it is ful-
ly inflated. In this case the protection
is considerably decreased.
As a consequence, the air bag 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 a less severe collision
(for which seat belts are sufficient pro-
tection) the airbag is not activated.
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
track or guard rail), the airbag is not
necessary. In the event of frontal im-
pacts involving, for example, the mud-
guard against a guardrail, the airbags
are not triggered as they would not of-
fer additional protection with respect
to the seat belts.
Therefore, the fact that the airbag
does not inflate is not a sign of sys-
tem malfunction.AIR BAG
DESCRIPTION
AND OPERATION fig. 68
The air bag is a safety device which is
immediately triggered in the event of
a frontal impact. It is available only for
the driver.
It consists of an instantly inflatable
bag housed in a special compartment
located in the centre of the steering
wheel.
The air bag is a device designed to
protect the driver in the event of a
frontal collision of medium-high sever-
ity, by interposing the cushion be-
tween the occupant and the steering
wheel.
In a collision, an electronic control
unit processes the signals from a de-
celeration sensor and, where required,
inflates the airbag.
fig. 68
P4E02039
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