2004 Acura MDX seats

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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 how your airbag
work, and it tells you how to properly
restrain inf ants and children in your
vehicle.
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Important Safety Precautions . 6
.......
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features . 7
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Seat Belts .8
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Airbags .9
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Protecting Adults and Teens . 11
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1. Close and Lock the Doors . 11
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2. Adjust the Front Seats . 11
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3. Adjust the Seat-Backs . 12
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4. Adjust the Head Restraints . 13
5. Fasten and Position the Seat .....................................
Belts .14
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6. Adjust the Steering Wheel . 16
7. Maintain a Proper Sitting ................................
Position .16
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Advice f or Pregnant Women . 17
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Additional Safety Precautions . 17Additional Inf ormation About Your
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Seat Belts .19
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Seat Belt System Components . 19
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Lap/Shoulder Belt .19
........ 20
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Seat Belt Maintenance . 21
Additional Inf ormation About Your .....................................
Airbags .22
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Airbag System Components . 22
......... 23
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Advanced Airbag .25
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How Your Side Airbags Work . 27
How Your Side Curtain Airbag .........................................
Work .28
How the SRS Indicator Light .......................................
Works .28
How The Side Airbag Of f ......................
Indicator Works .29
How the Passenger Airbag ...............
Of f indicator Works . 30
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Airbag Service .31
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Additional Safety Precautions . 32
Protecting Children General ................................
Guidelines .33
All Children Must Be ...............................
Restrained .33 All Children Should Sit in a Back
...........................................
Seat .34
The Passenger’s Front Airbag Can Pose Serious Risks to ...............................
Children .34
If You Must Drive with Several ...................................
Children .36
If a Child Requires Close ..................................
Attention .36
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Additional Safety Precautions . 36
Protecting inf ants and .........................
Small Children .38
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Protecting Inf ants .38
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Protecting Small Children . 39
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Selecting a Child Seat .40
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Installing a Child Seat .41
Installing a Child Seat with .....................................
LATCH .42
Installing a Child Seat with ...............
a Lap/Shoulder Belt . 44
Installing a Child Seat with ...................................
a Tether .45
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Protecting Larger Children . 47
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Carbon Monoxide Hazard . 51
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Saf ety Labels .52
Automatic Seat Belt Tensioners
How Your Front Airbags Work
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Driver and Passenger Saf ety5

Your vehicle 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, a collapsible
steering column, and seat belt
tensioners that tighten the front seat
belts in the event of a crash.
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Driver and Passenger Saf ety7
(7)(10)(9) (3) (1)
(2)
(6)
(10)
(7) (8)
(5)
(2) (11)
(4)
(6) Seat Belts
(7) Front Airbags
(8) Front Seat Belt Tensioners
(9) Door Locks
(10) Side Airbags
(11) Side Curtain Airbags (1) Safety Cage
(2) Crush Zones
(3) Seats and Seat-Backs
(4) Head Restraints
(5) Collapsible Steering Column

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 and
always wear your seat belts properly.
Infact,somesafetyfeaturescan
contribute to injuries if they are not
used properly.Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in all seating positions.
The f ollowing pages explain how you
cantakeanactiveroleinprotecting
yourself and your passengers. Your seat belt system also
includes an indicator on the
instrument panel to remind you and
your passengers to f asten your seat
belts.
Seat belts are the single most
effectivesafetydeviceforadultsand
larger children (Inf ants and smaller
children must be properly restrained
in child seats).
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces require you to
wear seat belts. When properly worn, seat belts:
Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle’s built-in saf ety f eatures.
Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including f rontal,
side, and rear impacts and
rollovers.
Help keep you f rom being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against other occupants.
Keep you f rom being thrown out
of the vehicle.
Help keep you in a good position
should the airbags ever deploy. A
good position reduces the risk of
injury f rom an inf lating airbag, and
allows you to get the best
advantage f rom the airbag.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Why Wear Seat Belt s
Seat Belts
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
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The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver, adult passengers,
and teenagers who are large enough
and mature enough to ride in the
f ront seat. See pages f or
important guidelines on how to
properly protect inf ants, small
children, and larger children who
ride in your vehicle.
See page f or how to lock the
doors, and page f or how the
monitor light works. Locking the doors reduces the
chance of someone being thrown out
of the vehicle during a crash, and it
helps prevent passengers f rom
accidentally opening a door and
f alling out.
Locking the doors also helps prevent
an outsider f rom unexpectedly
opening a door when you come to a
stop. Your vehicle has a door and tailgate
monitor indicator 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.Adjust the driver’s seat as far to the
rear as possible while allowing you to
maintain f ull control of the vehicle.
Have a front passenger adjust their
seat as far to the rear as possible.
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8060
Protecting A dults and Teens
Introduction Close and L ock the DoorsA djust the Front Seats
1. 2.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety11

If you sit too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard, you can be
seriously injured by an inf lating f ront
airbag, or by striking the steering
wheel or dashboard.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport
Canada recommend that drivers
allow at least 10 inches (25 cm)
between the center of the steering
wheel and the chest.Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it back and f orth to make sure
the seat is locked into position. See
page f or how to adjust the f ront
seats.
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.
Passengers with adjustable seat-
backs should also adjust their seat-
back to a comf ortable, upright
position.
If you cannot get f ar enough away
f rom the steering wheel and still
reach the controls, we recommend
that you investigate whether some
type of adaptive equipment may help. 84
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Adjust the Seat-Backs
3.
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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.

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, 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.
Insert the latch plate into the buckle,
then tug on the belt to make sure the
belt is securely latched. Check that
the belt is not twisted, because a
twisted belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash.
In the second row center seat and
thethirdrowseats,besurethe
detachable anchors are also latched. Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
5.
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety14
Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned before
driving.

Adjust the steering wheel, if needed,
so that the wheel points toward your
chest, not toward your f ace. This
provides optimal protection f rom the
f ront 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.
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 in a crash
by striking interior parts of the
vehicle or being struck by an
inflating f ront airbag. Being struck
by an inf lating side airbag can result
in possibly serious injuries.
76
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
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.
Always sit upright, well back in
the seat, with your feet on the
floor.

If you are pregnant, the best way to
protect yourself and your unborn
child when driving or riding in a
vehicle is to always wear a seat belt,
and keep the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across the hips.When driving, remember to sit
upright and adjust the seat as f ar
back as possible while allowing f ull
control of the vehicle. When riding
as a f ront passenger, adjust the seat
as far back as possible.
This will reduce the risk of injuries
to both you and your unborn child
that can be caused by a crash or an
inflating front airbag.
Each time you have a check-up, ask
your doctor if it’s okay f or you to
drive.
All passengers
must sit in locked, upright seats
andbeproperlyrestrainedbyseat
belts.
A passenger who is not
wearing a seat belt during a crash
or emergency stop can be thrown
against the inside of the vehicle,
against other occupants, or out of
the vehicle.
If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a
crash.
CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Advice f or Pregnant Women Additional Saf ety Precautions
Never let passengers ride in t he
cargo area or on t op of a f olded-down back seat .
Passengers should not st and up orchange seats while the vehicle ismoving.
T wo people should never use t hesame seat belt .
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