2004 Acura MDX Owner's Manual

For saf ety, you should check the
condition of your seat belts regularly.
Pull each belt out f ully and look f or
f rays, cuts, burns, and wear. Check
that the latches work smoothly and
the belts retract easily. Any belt not
in good condition or not working
properly will not provide good
protection and should be replaced as
soon as possible.Acura provides a lif etime warranty
on seat belts f or U.S. models. See
your
booklet f or details.
If a seat belt is worn during a crash,
it must be replaced by the dealer. A
belt that has been worn during a
crash may not provide the same level
of protection in a subsequent crash.
The dealer should also inspect the
anchors f or damage and replace
them if needed. If the automatic seat
belt tensioners activate during a
crash, they must be replaced.
For inf ormation on how to clean your
seat belts, see page .
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Acura Warranty Inf ormation
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Seat Belt Maintenance
21
Not checking or maintaining
seat belts can result in serious
injury or death if the seat belts
do not work properly when
needed.
Check your seat belts regularly
and have any problem
corrected as soon as possible.

Your Airbag System (SRS) includes:Two side airbags, one f or the
driver and one f or a f ront
passenger. The airbags are stored
in the outer edges of the seat-
backs. Both are marked ‘‘SIDE
AIRBAG’’ (see page ). Two SRS (Supplemental Restraint
System) f ront airbags. The driver’s
airbag is stored in the center of
the steering wheel; the f ront
passenger’sairbagisstoredinthe
dashboard. Both are marked ‘‘SRS
AIRBAG’’ (see page ).
Two side curtain airbags, one f or
each side of the vehicle. The
airbags are stored in the f ront, and
rear pillars and above the windows.
The f ront and rear pillars on both
sides are marked ‘‘SIDE
CURTAIN AIRBAG’’ (see page ).
Automatic seat belt tensioners
(see page ). 23
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
A irbag System Components
22
(5)
(3)
(4)
(4)
(5)(2)
(10) (8) (10)(8)(9)
(11)
(7)
(9)(1)
(6)
(1) Driver’s Front Airbag
(2) Passenger’s Front Airbag
(3) Control Unit
(4) Seat Belt Tensioners
(5) Side Airbags
(6) Side Curtain Airbags
(7) Driver’s Seat Position Sensor
(8) Front Passenger’s Seat Weight Sensors
(9) Front Impact Sensor
(10) Side Impact Sensors
(11) Passenger Airbag Off Indicator

A sophisticated electronic system
that continually monitors and
records inf ormation about the
sensors, the control unit, the
airbag activators, and driver and
frontpassengerseatbeltusewhen
the ignition is in the ON (II)
position.If you ever have a moderate to
severe f rontal collision, sensors will
detect the vehicle’s rapid
deceleration. If the rate of
deceleration is high enough, the
control unit will instantly inf late the
driver’s and f ront passenger’s f ront
airbags, at the appropriate time and
with the f orce needed.
Sensors that can detect a
moderate to severe frontal impact,
side impact or rollover.
A driver’s seat position sensor that
monitors the distance of the seat
from the front airbag. If the seat is
too f ar f orward, the airbag will
inf late with less f orce.
Sensors that can detect whether a
child’s head is in the deployment
path of the passenger’s side airbag
and automatically turn the airbag
of f (see page ). Front passenger’s weight sensors
that monitor the weight on the
f ront passenger’s seat. These
prevent the passenger’s f ront
airbag from inflating if the weight
is less than about 65 lbs (30 kg)
(see page ).
An indicator on the dashboard that
alerts you that the passenger’s
f ront airbag has been turned of f
(see page ). An indicator on the instrument
panel that alerts you that the f ront
passenger’s side airbag has been
turned of f (see page ). Emergency backup power in case
your vehicle’s electrical system is
disconnected in a crash. The SRS indicator on the
instrument panel that alerts you to
a possible problem with your
airbags (see page ).
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CONT INUED
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
How Your Front Airbags Work
23

During a f rontal crash, your seat belt
help restrains your lower body and
torso and the airbag helps protect
your head and chest.
Although both airbags normally
inf late within a split second of each
other, it is possible f or only one
airbag to deploy.
This can happen if the severity of a
collision is at the margin, or
threshold, that determines whether
or not the airbags will deploy. In
such cases, the seat belt will provide
suf f icient protection, and the
supplemental protection of f ered by
the airbag would be minimal.
Only the driver’s airbag can deploy if
there is no passenger in the f ront
seat, or if the advanced airbag
system has turned the passenger’s
airbag off (see page ).Af ter inf lating, the f ront airbags will
immediately def late, so they won’t
interf ere with the driver’s visibility,
or the ability to steer or operate
other controls.The total time for inflation and
def lation is one-tenth of a second, so
f ast that most occupants are not
aware that the airbags deployed until
they see them lying in their laps.
After a crash, you may see what
looks like smoke. This is actually
powder f rom the airbag’s surf ace.
Although the powder is not harmf ul,
people with respiratory problems
mayexperiencesometemporary
discomf ort. If this occurs, get out of
the vehicle as soon as it is saf e to do
so.
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety24

CONT INUED
Your f ront airbags are dual-stage
airbags. This means they have two
inf lation stages that can be ignited
sequentially or simultaneously,
depending on crash severity.
In acrash, both stages
will ignite simultaneously to provide
the quickest and greatest protection.
In a crash, one stage will
ignite first, then the second stage
will ignite a split second later. This
provides longer airbag inf lation time
with a little less force. Your f ront airbags are also dual-
threshold airbags. Airbags with this
f eature have two deployment
thresholds that depend on whether
or not the occupant is wearing a seat
belt.
If the occupant’s belt is
,
the airbag will deploy at the same
threshold as a conventional airbag,
because the occupant would need
extra protection.
If the occupant’s belt , the
airbag will inf late at a slightly higher
threshold, when the airbag would be
needed to supplement the protection
provided by the seat belt. Your f ront airbags are also advanced
airbags. The main purpose of this
feature is to prevent airbag-caused
injuries to short drivers and children
who ride in f ront.
For the advanced airbags to work
properly, occupants must sit upright
and wear their seat belts properly. If
a child seat is installed in the f ront, it
must be properly secured.
In addition, do not spill any liquids on
or under the seats, cover the sensors,
or put any cargo or metal objects
under the f ront seats. Ask second
row passengers to not put their f eet
under the f ront seats. Any of these
actions could damage the sensors or
prevent them f rom working properly.
Failure to f ollow these instructions
could damage the sensors or prevent
them f rom working properly.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Dual-Stage A irbags
more severeless severe Dual-T hreshold A irbags
not lat chedis latchedAdvanced Airbags
25

The driver’s advanced front airbag
system includes a seat position
sensor under the seat. If the seat is
positioned too f ar f orward, the
airbag will inf late sequentially,
regardless of the severity of the
impact.When the airbag is turned of f , an
indicator in the center of the
dashboard will come on indicating
‘‘Passenger Airbag Of f ’’ (see page
).
To ensure that the passenger’s
advanced front airbag system will
work properly,
This includes: A rear passenger pushing or
pulling on the back of the
passenger’s seat.
Moving the f ront seat f orcibly
back against cargo on the seat or
f loor behind it.
Hanging heavy items on the f ront
passenger seat, or placing heavy
items in the seat-back pocket.
If there is no passenger in the f ront
seat, the
but the
indicator .
The passenger’s advanced f ront
airbag system has weight sensors
under the seat. If the sensors detect
a total weight on the seat of about 65
lbs ( 30kg) or less, the system will
automatically turn the passenger’s
front airbag off.
If there is a problem with the sensor,
the SRS indicator will come on in the
instrument panel and the airbag will
inf late in the normal manner
regardless of the driver’s seating position.
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
do not do anyt hing
t hat would increase or decrease t he weight on t he f ront passenger’s seat . airbag will be of f
will not come on
26
DRIVER’S
SEAT
POSITION
SENSOR PASSENGER’S
SEAT WEIGHT
SENSOR

If you ever have a moderate to
severe side impact, sensors will
detect rapid deceleration and signal
the control unit to instantly inf late
either the driver’s or the passenger’s
side airbag.
Only one airbag will deploy during a
side impact. If the impact is on the
passenger’s side, the passenger’s
side airbag will deploy even if there
is no passenger.The passenger’s side airbag has a
cutof f system designed to turn of f
the passenger’s side airbag if a child’s
head is in the airbag’s deployment
path (see page ).
If a short adult leans sideways, or a
larger adult slouches and leans
sideways into the side airbag
deployment path, the system may
also shut of f the side airbag.
If the side airbag of f indicator comes
on (see page ), have the
passenger sit upright. Once the
passenger is out of the deployment
path of the side airbag, the system
will turn the airbag back on and the
indicator will go out.
There will be some delay between
the moment the passenger moves
into or out of airbag deployment path
and when the indicator comes on or
goes of f .
To get the best protection f rom the
side airbags, front seat occupants
should wear their seat belts and sit
upright and well back in their seats.
A f ront seat passenger should not
use a cushion or other object as a
backrest. It may prevent the cutof f
system f rom working properly.
When you turn the ignition to ON
(II), the indicator should come on
brief ly and go out (see page ). If it
doesn’t come on, stays on, or comes
on while driving without a passenger
in the front seat, have the system
checked.
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
How Your Side A irbags Work
27

In a moderate to severe side impact,
sensors will detect rapid deceleration
and signal the control unit to
instantly inflate the side curtain
airbag on the driver’s or the
passenger’s side of the vehicle.If sensors detect the vehicle is
continuing to roll over to the other
side, the control unit will deploy the
other side curtain airbag.Side curtain airbags are designed to
help protect the heads of the driver,
f ront passenger, and passengers in
the outer seating positions of the
second and third rows.
In a rollover toward the passenger’s
side of the vehicle, the side curtain
airbag will inflate even if there are no
occupants on that side of the vehicle. To get the best protection f rom the
side curtain airbags, occupants
should wear their seat belts and sit
upright and well back in their seats.
The SRS indicator light
alerts you to a potential
problem with your f ront airbags, side
airbags, side curtain airbags, or seat
belt tensioners.
When you turn the ignition to ON
(II), this indicator will come on
brief ly then go out. This tells you the
system is working properly.
If the impact is on the passenger’s
side, the passenger’s side curtain
airbag will inflate even if there are no
occupants on that side of the vehicle.
If sensors detect your vehicle is
about to tip over, the control unit will
instantly deploy the side curtain
airbag on the downward side of the
rolling motion.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
How Your Side Curtain A irbags
Work
How the SRS Indicator Works
In a Side ImpactIn a Rollover
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