2003 HONDA CIVIC HATCHBACK steering

ÎÎ
: To use the horn, press the center pad of the steering wheel.
Your Car at a Glance
3
WINDSHIELD WIPERS/WASHERS
(P. 68/69)
HAZARD WARNING LIGHTS
(P. 70)
REAR WINDOW DEFOGGER
(P. 70)
(P. 124)
HORN
TILT ADJUSTMENT
(P. 71)
HEADLIGHTS/
TURN SIGNALS
(P. 66/68)
CRUISE CONTROL
MASTER SWITCH
(P. 124)
MIRROR CONTROLS
(P. 88)
CRUISE CONTROL BUTTONS

This section gives you important
inf ormation about how to protect
yourself and your passengers. It
shows you how to use seat belts
properly. It explains your Supple-
mental Restraint System. And it tells
you how to properly restrain inf ants
andchildreninyourcar..........
Important Safety Precautions . 6
.............
Your Car’s Saf ety Features . 7
.......................................
Seat Belts . 8
...........................................
Airbags . 9
..................
Seats and Seat-Backs . 10
..........................
Head Restraints . 10
..................................
Door Locks . 11
........
Pre-Drive Saf ety Checklist . 11
............................
Protecting Adults . 12
.....
1. Close and Lock the Doors . 12 ...........
2. Adjust the Front Seats . 12
............
3. Adjust the Seat-Backs . 13
...
4. Adjust the Head Restraints . 14
5. Fasten and Position the Seat
.....................................
Belts . 15
....
6. Adjust the Steering Wheel . 17
7. Maintain a Proper Sitting
................................
Position . 17
.....
Advice f or Pregnant Women . 18
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 18
........................
Protecting Children . 20
All Children Must Be
...............................
Restrained . 20
Children Should Sit in the Back ...........................................
Seat . 21
The Passenger’s Airbag Poses
......
Serious Risks to Children . 21
If You Must Drive with Several ...................................
Children . 24
If a Child Requires Close
..................................
Attention . 24
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 24
General Guidelines f or Using
...............................
Child Seats . 25
.......................
Protecting Inf ants . 29
.........
Protecting Small Children . 32 .......
Protecting Larger Children . 35
Using Child Seats with
.....................................
Tethers . 39
Additional Inf ormation About Your .................................
Seat Belts . 43
..
Seat Belt System Components . 43
......................
Lap/Shoulder Belt . 43
Automatic Seat Belt
...............................
Tensioners . 44
...............
Seat Belt Maintenance . 45
Additional Inf ormation About Your .....................................
Airbags . 46
....................
Airbag Components . 46
How Your Front Airbags
.........................................
Work . 46
...
How Your Side Airbags Work . 48
How the SRS Indicator Light
.......................................
Works . 48
How the Passenger Airbag Cutoff Indicator Light
...................................
Works . 49
.............................
Airbag Service . 50
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 51
.............
Carbon Monoxide Hazard . 52
...................................
Saf ety Labels . 53
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Driver and Passenger Saf ety 5

Your car is equipped with many
features that work together to
protect you and your passengers
during a crash.
Some saf ety f eatures do not require
anyactiononyourpart.These
include a strong steel f ramework
that forms a safety cage around the
passenger compartment; f ront and
rear crush zones that are designed to
crumple and absorb energy during a
crash; a collapsible steering column;
and seat belt tensioners that
automatically tighten the front seat
belts in the event of a crash.
These saf ety f eatures are designed
to reduce the severity of injuries in a
crash. However, you and your
passengers can’t take f ull advantage
of these saf ety f eatures unless you
remain sitting in a proper position
andIn f act, some saf ety
f eatures can contribute to injuries if
they are not used properly.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Your Car’s Saf ety Features
always wear your seat belts
properly.
7
(5)
(7)
(8)
(1)
(3) (6)
(4) (6)
(2)
(9)
(2) (8)
(7) (10)
(1) Safety Cage
(2) Crush Zones
(3) Seats and Seat-Backs
(4) Head Restraints
(5) Collapsible Steering Column
(6) Seat Belts
(7) Front Airbags
(8) Side Airbags (Optional)
(9) Seat Belt Tensioners
(10) Seat Belt Buckle Tensioners

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.
Your car’s seats are designed to keep
you in a comf ortable, upright
position so you can take f ull
advantage of the protection offered
by seat belts and the energy
absorbing materials in the seats.
Reclining a seat-back too f ar reduces
the seat belt’s ef f ectiveness and
increases the chance that the seat’s
occupant will slide under the seat
belt in a crash and be seriously
injured.
To do their job, airbags must
inf late with tremendous f orce and
speed. So while airbags help save
lives, they can cause minor injuries,
or more serious or even fatal
injuries if occupants are not
properly restrained or sitting
properly.
Always wear
your seat belt properly, and sit
upright and as f ar back as possible
f rom the steering wheel or
dashboard. How you adjust your seats and seat-
backs can also affect your safety. For
example, sitting too close to the
steering wheel or dashboard
increases the risk of you or your
passenger being injured by striking
theinsideof thevehicle,orbyan
inf lating airbag. Move the f ront
seats as far back as possible, and
keep adjustable seat-backs in an
upright position whenever the
vehicle is moving.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Your Car’s Saf ety Features
Head Restraints
Seats and Seat-Backs
Airbags can pose serious hazards.
What you should do: What you should do:
10

Any inf ant or small child is
properly restrained in a child seat
inthebackseat(seepage ).
Seat-backs are upright (see page). Head restraints are properly
adjusted (see page ).
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.
All adults, and children who have
outgrown child saf ety seats, are
wearing their seat belts and
wearingthemproperly(seepage
). All cargo is properly stored or
secured (see page ).
Frontseatoccupantsaresitting
upright and as f ar back as possible
f rom the steering wheel and
dashboard (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:
Both doors and the hatch are
closed and locked (see page ).
Keeping your doors locked reduces
thechanceof beingthrownoutof
the vehicle 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
12
13 12
20 137
14
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Door Locks Pre-Drive Saf ety Checklist
Your Car’s Saf ety Features
11

The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver and other adult
occupants.
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.)For security, locked doors can
prevent an outsider f rom
unexpectedly opening a door when
you come to a stop.
See page f or how to lock the
doors.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.
Af ter everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors are closed
and locked.
For saf ety, locking the doors reduces
the chance that a passenger,
especially a child, will open a door
while the vehicle is moving and
accidentally f all out. It also reduces
the chance of someone being thrown
out of the vehicle during a crash.
35
75
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
Introduction A djust the Front Seats
Close and L ock the Doors
1. 2.
12

CONT INUED
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.
See page f or how to adjust the
f ront seats.
Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it back and f orth to make sure
the seat is locked in position.
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.
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.
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 (25 cm)
away f rom the center of the steering
wheel.Alsomakesureyourfront
seat passenger moves the seat as f ar
to the rear as possible.
81Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
Adjust the Seat-Backs
3.
13
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.

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
vehicle is parked and the engine is
off.
Remember, to get the best
protection f rom your car’s airbags
and other safety features, you must
sit properly and wear your seat belt
properly.
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 vehicle,
or by being struck by an inf lating
f ront airbag. Being struck by an
inf lating side airbag can result in possibly serious injuries.
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.
71
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Maintain a Proper Sitting
Position
A djust the Steering Wheel
6. 7.
17
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.