2003 SUBARU LEGACY Owners Manual

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Precautions against vehicle modification CAUTION
Do not perform any of the following modifications. Such modifi- cations can interfere with proper operation of the seatbelt perten-sioners. Attachment of any equipment (bush bar, winches, snow plow,
skid plate, etc.) other than SUBARU genuine accessory parts tothe front end. Modification of the suspension system or front end structure.
Installation of a tire of different size and construction from the
tires specified on the tire placard attached to the door jamb.
Always consult your SUBARU dealer if you want to install any acces-
sory parts to your vehicle.
Child restraint systems
WARNING
Never let a passenger hold a child on his or her lap while the
vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the child frominjury in a collision, because the child will be caught between the
passenger and objects inside the vehicle. Additionally, holding achild in your lap or arms in the front seat exposes that child to
another serious danger. Since the SRS airbag deploys with con-
siderable speed and force, the child could be injured or evenkilled. Put children aged 12 and under in the rear seat properly re-
strained at all times. The SRS airbag deploys with considerablespeed and force and can injure or even kill children, especially ifthey are 12 years of age and under and are not restrained or im-properly restrained. Because children are lighter and weaker than
adults, their risk of being injured from deployment is greater.

1-34For that reason, be sure to secure ALL types of child restraint
devices (including forward facing child seats) in the REAR seats
at all times. You should choose a restraint device which isappropriate for the child
’s age, height and weight. According to
accident statistics, children are safer when properly restrained inthe rear seating positions than in the front seating positions. SINCE YOUR VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH A PASSENGER ’S
SRS AIRBAG, DO NOT INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD
SAFETY SEAT IN THE FRONT PASSENGER ’S SEAT. DOING SO
RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO THE CHILD BY PLACINGTHE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO CLOSE TO THE SRS AIRBAG.
Children should be properly restrained in the rear seat at all
times. Never allow a child to stand up, or to kneel on the front
passenger’ s seat. The SRS airbag deploys with considerable
force and can injure or even kill the child.
HB0306
HB0308
HB0307
Never install rearward facing child safety seat in the front passen-
ger’
s seat.
Never allow a child to stand up, or to kneel on the front passenger ’s
seat or any other seat
Never hold a child on your lap or inyour arms in the front passenger
’s
seat or any other seat.
HS1031BB

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WARNING
Child restraint systems and seatbelts can become hot in a ve-
hicle that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn a small child. Check the child restraint system before you place achild in it. Do not leave an unsecured child restraint system in your vehi-
cle. Unsecured child restraint systems can be thrown around in-
side of the vehicle in a sudden stop, turn or accident; it can strikeand injure vehicle occupants as well as result in serious injuriesor death to the child.
Infants and small children should always be placed in an infant or child
restraint system in the rear seat while riding in the vehicle. You should
use an infant or child restraint system that meets Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards or Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, is compat-
ible with your vehicle and is appropriate for the child ’s age and size. All
child restraint systems are designed to be secured in vehicle seats by
lap belts or the lap belt portion of a lap/shoulder belt (except those cov-
ered under the section in this manual, entitled “Instruction of child re-
straint systems by use of lower and tether anchorages ”).
Children could be endangered in an accident if their child restraints are
not properly secured in the vehicle. When installing the child restraint
system, carefully follow the manufacturer ’s instructions.
According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly re-
strained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating positions.
All U.S. states and Canadian provinces require that infants and small
children be restrained in an approved child restraint system at all timeswhile the vehicle is moving. Installing child restraint systems with seatbelt
NOTE When the child restraint system is no longer in use, remove it and
restore the ELR function of the retractor. That function is restored
by allowing the seatbelt to retract fully.

1-36CAUTION
When you install a child restraint system, follow the manufactur-
er’ s instructions supplied with it. After installing the child re-
straint system, check to ensure that it is held securely in posi-
tion. If it is not held tight and secure, the danger of your childsuffering personal injury in the event of an accident may be in-creased.
HB1080BA
1. Set the child restraint system in the seating position.
2. Run the lap and shoulder belt through or around the child restraint
system following the instructions provided by its manufacturer. If the
shoulder belt goes in front of the child ’s face or neck, put it behind the
child restraint system.
3. Insert the tongue plate into the buckle.
4. Take up the slack in the lap belt.
5. Pull out the seatbelt fully from the retractor to change the retractor
over from the Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR) to the Automatic
Locking Retractor (ALR) function. Then, allow the belt to rewind into
the retractor. As the belt is rewinding, clicks will be heard which indi-
cate the retractor functions as ALR.
6. Before having a child sit in the child restraint system, move it back
and forth to check if it is firmly secured. Sometimes a child restraint
can be more firmly secured by pushing it down into the seat cushionand then tightening the seatbelt.

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7. Pull at the shoulder portion of the belt to confirm that it cannot be
pulled out (ALR properly functioning).
If the child restraint system requires a top tether, latch the hook onto
the top tether anchorage and tighten the top tether. See the
“Top teth-
er anchorages ” for additional instructions.
HB1083BAHBS065BA
8. To remove the child restraint system, press the release button on
the seatbelt buckle and allow the belt to retract completely. The belt
will return to the ELR mode.
If you have any question concerning this type of child restraint sys-
tem, ask your SUBARU dealer.

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Installation of child restraint systems by use of lower and teth- er anchorages
Some types of child restraint systems can be installed on the rear
seat of your vehicle without use of the seatbelts. Such child restraint
systems are secured to the dedicated anchorages provided on the
vehicle body.
HB1086BA
Your vehicle is equipped with four lower anchorages (bars) and three upper anchorages (tether anchorages) for accommodating such child
restraint systems.
HB1090BAHB1087BA
The lower anchorages (bars) are used for installing a child restraint
system only on the rear seat window-side seating positions. For each
window-side seating position, two lower anchorages are provided.
The tether anchorages (upper anchorages) are provided for all the
seating positions (middle and both window-side ones) of the rear seat.

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HS1078BAHB1088BA
You will find marks “” at the bottom of the rear seat seatbacks.
These marks indicate the positions of the lower anchorages (bars).
Each lower anchorage is located where the seat cushion meets theseatback.
CAUTION
When you install a child restraint system, follow the manufactur-er ’s instructions supplied with it. After installing the child restraint
system, check to ensure that it is held securely in position. If it is
not held tight and secure, the danger of your child suffering per-
sonal injury in the event of an accident may be increased.
1. Use the “Child” marks to locate the two lower anchorages (bars)
for the position where you want to install the child restraint system.
2. While following the instructions supplied by the child restraint sys-
tem manufacturer, connect the connectors of the child restraint sys-tem to the lower anchorages.
When the connectors are fastened, make sure that the adjacent seat-
belts are not caught.
If your child restraint system is of a flexible attachment type (which
uses tether straps to connect the child restraint system proper to the
lower anchorages), firmly tighten the straps after connecting the con-nectors.
3. Connect the top tether hook to the tether anchorage and firmly
tighten the tether.

1-40For information on how to set the top tether, read the following
“To p
tether anchorages ”.
4. Before seating a child in the child restraint system, try to move seat
back and forth to verify that it is held securely in position.
If you have any question concerning this type of child restraint sys-
tem, ask your SUBARU dealer.
Top tether anchorages Anchorage location
HBS061BB
HB1077BC
Three anchorages, i.e., ones for the right, center and left positions,
are already installed on the rear shelf (on Sedan) or on the rear edge
of the roof (on Staion wagon).