2003 HONDA ODYSSEY ECU

To make sure you and your
passengers get the maximum
protection f rom your vehicle’s saf ety
f eatures, check the f ollowing each
time before you drive away:Any inf ant or small child is
properly restrained in a child seat
in a back seat (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.
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 ).
Alldoorsandthetailgateare
closed and locked (see page ).
All cargo is properly stored or
secured (see page ).
All adults, and children who have
outgrown child saf ety seats, are
wearing their seat belts and
wearingthemproperly(seepage
).
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Pre-Drive Saf ety Checklist
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Driver and Passenger Saf ety12

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.)Your vehicle has a door and tailgate
monitor light on the instrument
panel to indicate when a specif ic
door or the tailgate is not tightly
closed. Af ter everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors and
tailgate are closed and locked.
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. 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.
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.
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Introduction A djust the Front Seats
Close and L ock the Doors
1. 2.
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety13

CONT INUED
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.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 shoulder
belt again to remove any slack from
the shoulder belt, then check that
the belt rests across the center of
your chest and over your shoulder.
This spreads the f orces of a crash
over the strongest bones in your
upper body.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Protecting Adults
Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
5.
Using a L ap/Shoulder Belt
(Except t he cent er posit ion of t hethird row)
17
Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned before
driving.

CONT INUED
Attach the metal hook on the edge of
the shoulder belt to the metal loop
on the latch plate of the lap belt
markedCENTER.Makesurethe
shoulder belt is securely attached
and it is not twisted. A twisted belt
can cause serious injuries in a crash.Insert the latch plate of the lap belt
into the buckle marked CENTER. If
the belt is too short, hold the latch
plate at a right angle and pull on the
plate to extend the belt. Then insert
the latch plate into the buckle, and
tug on the lap and shoulder belts to
make sure the belt is securely
latched.Position the lap belt as low as
possible across your hips, then
pull on the loose end of the lap
belt f or a snug but comf ortable
f it. This lets your strong pelvic
bones take the f orce of a crash
andreducesthechanceof
internal injuries.
Protecting Adults
Driver and Passenger Saf ety19
METAL
HOOK
LATCH PLATE

Many parents say they pref er to put
an inf ant or small child in the f ront
passenger seat so they can watch the
child, or because the child requires
attention.
Your vehicle has two rows of back
seats where children can be properly
restrained.
Place the largest child in the f ront
seat, provided the child is large
enough to wear a seat belt
properly (see page ).
Move the vehicle seat as far to the
rear as possible (see page ).
Have the child sit upright and well
backintheseat(seepage ).
Make sure the seat belt is properly
positioned and secured (see page ).
If you ever have to carry a group of
children (when carpooling f or
example), and a child must ride in
front:
Placing a child in the f ront seat
exposes the child to hazards f rom
the passenger’s f ront airbag, and
paying close attention to a child
distracts the driver f rom the
important tasks of driving, placing
both of you at risk.
If a child requires physical attention
or f requent visual contact, we
strongly recommend that another
adult ride with the child in a back
seat. The back seat is far safer for a
child than the front.
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17 If a Child Requires Close
Attention
If You Must Drive with Several
Children
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety28

This page brief ly summarizes
Honda’s recommendations on where
to place rear-facing and forward-
f acing child seats in your vehicle.Recommended positions.
Properlysecurearear-facingchild
seat (see page ).
Recommended
positions. Properly secure a f ront-
f acing child seat (see page ).
To help prevent airbag-caused
deaths and injuries to children,
this vehicle has an advanced
airbag system.
With this system, the front
passenger’s airbag is turned of f
if sensors detect a total weight
of less than about 65 lbs (30 kg)
in the seat.
Even if the f ront passenger’s
airbag is turned of f , we strongly
recommend that inf ants and
small children ride properly
restrained in a back seat where
they will be saf er. Not recommended. If
a small child must ride in f ront,
move the vehicle seat to the rear-
most position and secure a f ront-
f acing child seat with the seat belt
(see page ). Never in the f ront seat, due
to the f ront airbag hazard. Not
recommended.
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Placing a Child Seat Front Passenger’s Seat
Back Seat sInf ant s:
Small children:
Small children:
Inf ant s:
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Airbags Pose Serious
Risks to Children
32

Af ter selecting a proper child seat,
and a good position to install the seat,
there are three main steps in
installing the seat:Make sure the child is properly
strappedinthechildseat
according to the child seat maker’s
instructions. A child who is not
properly secured in a child seat
canbethrownoutof theseatina
crash and be seriously injured.
However, a child seat does not need
to be ‘‘rock solid.’’ In some vehicles
or seating positions, it may be
dif f icult to install a child seat so that
it does not move at all. Some side-to-
side or back-and-f orth movement can
be expected and should not reduce
the child seat’s ef f ectiveness. When you are not using a child seat,
either remove it and store it in a saf e
place, or make sure it is properly
secured. An unsecured child seat can
be thrown around the vehicle during
a crash or sudden stop and injure
someone.
If the child seat is not secure, try
installing it in a dif f erent seating
position, or use a dif f erent style of
child seat that can be f irmly secured
in the desired seating position. To provide security during normal
driving maneuvers as well as during
a collision, we recommend that
parents secure a child seat as f irmly
as possible.
Af ter installing a child
seat, push and pull the seat
f orward and f rom side to side to
verif y that it is secure. All child seats are
designed to be secured to the
vehicle with the lap part of a lap/
shoulder belt. Some child seats
can be secured to the vehicle’s
LATCH anchorage system instead.
A child whose seat is not properly
secured to the vehicle can be
endangered in a crash. See pages , and f or instructions on
howtoproperlysecurechildseats
in this vehicle. 39 48
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Inst alling a Child Seat Secure t he child in t he child seat .
Storing a Child Seat
Make sure t he child seat is f irmly secured.
Properly secure t he child seat t o
the vehicle.
1.
2. 3.
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety33

With the child seat in the desired
back seating position, route the
belt through the child seat
according to the seat maker’s
instructions, then insert the latch
plate into the buckle.
The lap/shoulder belts in the outer
back seats have a locking
mechanism that must be activated to
secure a child seat.
The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to secure a rear-
facing child seat with this type of
seat belt.
See page f or how to secure a rear-
f acing child seat in the center
position on the third seat with the lap
part of the lap/shoulder belt.
For tips on installing a rear-f acing
child seat with either type of seat
belt, see page .
When properly installed, a rear-
f acing child seat may prevent the
driver or a f ront-seat passenger f rom
moving the seat as far back as
recommended (see page ). Or it
may prevent them f rom locking the
seat-back in the desired upright
position (see page ).
In either case, we recommend that
you place the child seat in another
back seating position, or leave the
af f ected seat unoccupied. If the
problem cannot be solved, you may
wish to get a smaller rear-f acing
child seat.
If you have a child seat designed to
be attached to the vehicle’s LATCH
anchorage system, follow the
instructions on page .1.
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CONT INUED
Inst alling a Rear-Facing Child Seat
wit h a L ap/Shoulder Belt
Protecting Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety35