2003 HONDA ACCORD Owners Manual

Frontseatoccupantsaresitting
upright and as f ar back as possible
f rom the steering wheel and
dashboard (see page ).
Seat-backs are upright (see page).
Head restraints are properly
adjusted (see page ).
All doors are closed and locked
(see page ).
All cargo is properly stored or
secured (see page ).
To make sure you and your
passengers get the maximum
protection f rom your car’s saf ety
f eatures, check the f ollowing each
time before you drive away:
All adults, and children who have
outgrown child saf ety seats, are
wearing their seat belts and
wearingthemproperly(seepage ).
Any inf ant or small child is
properly restrained in a child seat
inthebackseat(seepage ).
Move the f ront
seats as far back as possible, and
keep adjustable seat-backs in an
upright position whenever the car is
moving.
Head restraints can help protect you
f rom whiplash and other injuries. For
maximum protection, the back of
your head should rest against the
center of the head restraint.
Keeping your doors locked reduces
thechanceof beingthrownoutof
the car during a crash. It also helps
prevent occupants f rom accidentally
opening a door and f alling out, and
outsiders f rom unexpectedly opening
your doors. 15
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214
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Your Car’s Saf ety Features
Pre-Drive Saf ety Checklist
Head Restraints
Door L ocksWhat you should do:
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For security, locked doors can
prevent an outsider f rom
unexpectedly opening a door when
you come to a stop.
Your car has a door monitor light on
the instrument panel to indicate
when a specif ic door is not tightly
closed.
For saf ety, locking the doors reduces
thechancethatapassenger,
especially a child, will open a door
while the car is moving and
accidentally f all out. It also reduces
thechanceof someonebeingthrown
out of the car during a crash.
See page f or how to lock the
doors.
Af ter everyone has entered the car,
be sure the doors are closed and
locked.
These instructions also apply to
children who have outgrown child
seats and are large enough to wear
lap/shoulder belts. (See page f or
important additional guidelines on
how to properly protect larger
children.)
The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver and other adult
occupants.
The rest of this section gives more
detailed inf ormation about how you
can maximize your saf ety.
Remember, however, that no saf ety
system can prevent all injuries or
deaths that can occur in severe
crashes, even when seat belts are
properly worn and the airbags deploy.
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Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
Close and L ock the Doors
Introduction 1.
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Any driver who sits too close to the
steering wheel is at risk of being
seriously injured or killed by striking
the steering wheel or f rom being
struck by an inflating front airbag
during a crash.To reduce the chance of injury, wear
your seat belt properly, sit upright
with your back against the seat, and
movetheseatawayfromthe
steering wheel to the f arthest
distance that allows you to maintain
f ull control of the car.
Most shorter drivers can get f ar
enough away f rom the steering
wheel and still reach the pedals.
However, if you are concerned about
sitting too close, we recommend that
you investigate whether some type
of adaptive equipment may help.
Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it back and f orth to make sure
the seat is locked in position.
See page f or how to adjust the
f ront seats.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport
Canada recommend that drivers
adjust the seat so the center of the
chest is at least 10 inches away f rom
the center of the steering wheel. In
addition to adjusting the seat, you
can adjust the steering wheel in and
out (see page ).
Also make sure your f ront seat
passenger moves the seat as f ar to
the rear as possible.
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Protecting Adults
Adjust the Front Seats
2.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety13
Sitting too close to a front
airbag can result in serious
injury or death if the front
airbags inflate.
Always sit as far back from the
front airbags as possible.
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A f ront passenger should also adjust
the seat-back to an upright position,
but as f ar f rom the dashboard as
possible. A passenger who sits too
close to the dashboard could be
injured if the f ront airbag inf lates.
Reclining a seat-back so that the
shoulder part of the belt no longer
rests against the occupant’s chest
reduces the protective capability of
the belt. It also increases the chance
of sliding under the belt in a crash
and being seriously injured. The
farther a seat-back is reclined, the
greater the risk of injury.See page f or how to adjust seat-
backs.
Adjust the driver’s seat-back to a
comf ortable, upright position,
leaving ample space between your
chest and the airbag cover in the
center of the steering wheel. If you
sit too close to the steering wheel,
you could be injured if the f ront
airbag inflates. 87
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Adjust the Seat-Backs
3.
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Reclining the seat-back too far
can result in serious injury or
death in a crash.
Adjust the seat-back to an
upright position and sit well
back in the seat.
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Bef ore driving, make sure everyone
with an adjustable head restraint has
properly positioned the head
restraint. The restraint should be
positioned so the back of the
occupant’s head rests against the
center of the restraint. A taller
person should adjust the restraint as
high as possible.Insert the latch plate into the buckle,
then tug on the belt to make sure the
belt is securely latched. Also check
that the belt is not twisted, because a
twisted belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash.
Properly adjusted head restraints
will help protect occupants f rom
whiplash and other crash injuries.
See page f or how to adjust the
head restraints. 91
CONT INUED
Adjust the Head Restraints
Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
4.
5.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
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Improperly positioning head
restraints reduces their
effectiveness and you can be
seriously injured in a crash.
Make sure head restraints are
in place and positioned properly
before driving.
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Position the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across your hips,
then pull up on the shoulder part of
the belt so the lap part f its snugly.
This lets your strong pelvic bones
take the force of a crash and reduces
the chance of internal injuries.
If necessary, pull up on the belt again
to remove any slack from the
shoulder part, then check that the
belt rests across the center of your
chest and over your shoulder. Thisspreads the f orces of a crash over
the strongest bones in your upper
body.
If the seat belt touches or crosses
your neck, or if it crosses your arm
instead of your shoulder, you need to
adjust the seat belt anchor height.
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety16
Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned beforedriving.
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To adjust the height of a f ront seat
belt anchor, squeeze the two release
buttons and slide the anchor up or
down as needed (it has f our
positions).This could cause
very serious injuries in a crash. If a seat belt does not seem to work
as it should, it may not protect the
occupant in a crash.
Anyone using a seat belt that is
not working properly can be
seriously injured or killed. Have your
Honda dealer check the belt as soon
as possible. See page f or additional
inf ormation about your seat belt
system and how to take care of your
belts.
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Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Never place t he shoulder port ion of a
lap/shoulder belt under your arm orbehind your back. No one should
sit in a seat wit h an inoperat ive seat belt.
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RELEASE
BUTTONS
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Adjust the steering wheel, if needed,
so that the wheel points toward your
chest, not toward your f ace.
Pointing the steering wheel toward
your chest provides optimal
protection f rom the airbag.
See page f or how to adjust the
steering wheel.After all occupants have adjusted
their seats and put on seat belts, it is
very important that they continue to
sit upright, well back in their seats,
with their feet on the floor, until the
car is parked and the engine is of f .
Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward or sideways,
or puts one or both f eet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is
greatly increased.
In addition, an occupant who is out of
position in the f ront seat can be
seriously or f atally injured by
striking interior parts of the car, or
by being struck by an inf lating f ront
airbag. Being struck by an inflating
side airbag can result in possibly
serious injuries.
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Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
Adjust the Steering Wheel Maintain a Proper Sitting Position
6.
7.
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Sitting improperly or out of
position can result in serious
injury or death in a crash.
Always sit upright, well back in
the seat, with your feet on thefloor.
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