2004 SUBARU IMPREZA WRX Owners Manual

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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1. Slide the front seat forward as far as possible.
2. Pull off the head restraint while pressing the re-
lease button.
3. Recline the seatback rearward up to the lowest po-
sition. Remember to reinstall the head restraint when-
ever the seatback is raised back.
"
Never drive your car with the seats converted
in a flat bed position. If you do so, occupants
will have a greater chance of being injured even
during simple deceleration, acceleration and
cornering since no firm restraint will be avail- able for them. "
Before you lie on the flat bed to take a rest,
read the description “Parking your vehicle” in
Chapter 7 carefully and follow the instructions.
! Active head restraint (if equipped)
The front seats of your vehicle are equipped with ac-
tive head restraints. They automatically tilt forward
slightly in the event the vehicle is struck from the rear,
decreasing the amount of rearward head movement
and thus reducing the risk of whiplash. For maximum
effectiveness the head restraint should be adjust so
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that the center of the head restraint is closest to the top
of the occupant’s ears.
"Each active head restraint is effective only
when its height is properly adjusted and the
user sits in the correct position on the seat. " Each active head restraint is designed to
work only once. If your vehicle is involved in a
rear-end collision, have an authorized SUBARU
dealer inspect the active head restraints." The active head restraints may not operate in
the event the vehicle experiences only a slight
impact in the rear." The active head restraints may be damaged if
they are pushed hard from behind or subjected
to shock. As a result, they may not function if
the vehicle suffers a rear impact.
Seat heater (if equipped)
1) HI – Rapid heating
2) LO – Normal heating
The seat heater operates when the ignition switch is
either in the “ACC” or “ON” position.
To turn on the seat heater, push the “LO” or “HI” posi-
tion on the switch, as desired, depending on the tem-
perature. Selecting the “HI” position will cause the seat
to heat up quicker.
The indicator located on the switch comes on when
the seat heater is in operation. When the vehicle’s in-
1
2
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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
terior is warmed enough or before you leave the vehi-
cle, be sure to turn the switch off.
"
There is a possibility that people with delicate
skin may suffer slight burns even at low tem-
peratures if he/she uses the seat heater for a
long period of time. When using the heater, al-
ways be sure to warn the persons concerned. " Do not put anything on the seat which insu-
lates against heat, such as a blanket, cushion,
or similar items. This may cause the seat heater
to overheat.
NOTE " Use of the seat heater for a long period of time
while the engine is not running can cause battery
discharge. " When cleaning the seat, do not use benzine,
paint thinner, or any similar materials.
Rear seats
Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when the
occupant sits well back and upright in the seat.
Do not put cushions or any other materials be-
tween occupants and seatbacks or seat cush-
ions. If you do so, the risk of sliding under the
lap belt and of the lap belt sliding up over the
abdomen will increase, and both can result in
serious internal injury or death.
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Never stack luggage or other cargo higher than
the top of the seatback because it could tumble
forward and injure passengers in the event of a
sudden stop or accident. !
Armrest (if equipped)
To lower the armrest, pull on the top edge of the arm- rest.
To avoid the possibility of serious injury, pas-
sengers must never be allowed to sit on the
center armrest while the vehicle is in motion.
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!
Loading long objects
Folding down the armrest and opening the seatback
panel affords a loading space for long objects.
To open the seatback panel, pull the release tab.
" Secure long objects properly to prevent them
from shooting forward and causing serious in-
jury during a sudden stop or sharp cornering.
Tie long objects down with a rope or something
equivalent. " Avoid loading objects longer than 6.6 ft (2 m)
and heavier than 55 lb (25 kg). Such objects can interfere with the driver’s proper operation of
the car, possibly causing an accident and seri-
ous injury.
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!Headrest adjustment – Wagon
To raise the headrest, pull it up.
To lower it, push the head rest down while depressing
the release button on the top of the seatback.
When the seats are not occupied, lower the headrests
to improve rearward visibility. !
Rear center seating position
To raise the head restraint, pull it up.
To lower it, push the headrest down while pressing the
release button on the top of the seatback.
When the rear-center seating position is occupied,
place the headrest in its highest position. When the
rear center seating position is not occupied, lower the
headrest to improve rearward visibility.
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!
Folding down the rear seat – Wagon 1. Lower the headrests.
2. Unlock the seatback by pulling the release knob
and then fold the seatback down.
To return the seatback to its original position, raise the
seatback until it locks into place and make sure that it
is securely locked.
"
After returning the rear seat to its original po-
sition, be certain to place all of the seatbelts and the tab attached to the seat cushion above
the seat cushion. And make certain that the
shoulder belts are fully visible. " Never allow passengers to ride on the folded
rear seatback or in the cargo area. Doing so
may result in serious injury or death. " Secure lengthy items properly to prevent
them from shooting forward and causing seri-
ous injury during a sudden stop.
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Seatbelts !Seatbelt safety tips
"All persons in the vehicle should fasten their
seatbelts BEFORE the vehicle starts to move.
Otherwise, the possibility of serious injury be-
comes greater in the event of a sudden stop or
accident. " All belts should fit snugly in order to provide
full restraint. Loose fitting belts are not as ef-
fective in preventing or reducing injury. " Each seatbelt is designed to support only
one person. Never use a single belt for two or
more persons — even children. Otherwise, in
an accident, serious injury or death could re-
sult. " Replace all seatbelt assemblies including re-
tractors and attaching hardware worn by occu-
pants of a vehicle that has been in a serious ac-
cident. The entire assembly should be replaced
even if damage is not obvious." Put children aged 12 and under in the rear
seat properly restrained at all times. The SRS
airbag deploys with considerable speed and force and can injure or even kill children, espe-
cially if they are 12 years of age and under and
are not restrained or improperly restrained. Be-
cause children are lighter and weaker than
adults, their risk of being injured from deploy-
ment is greater. For that reason, we strongly
recommend that ALL children (including those
in child seats and those that have outgrown
child restraint devices) sit in the REAR seat
properly restrained at all times in a child re-
straint device or in a seatbelt, whichever is ap-
propriate for the child’s height and weight.
Secure ALL types of child restraint devices (in-
cluding forward facing child seats) in the REAR
seats at all times.
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD
SEAT IN THE FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO THE CHILD
BY PLACING THE CHILD’S HEAD TOO CLOSE
TO THE SRS AIRBAG.
According to accident statistics, children are
safer when properly restrained in the rear seat-
ing positions than in the front seating posi-
tions. For instructions and precautions con-
cerning the child restraint system, see the
“Child restraint systems” section in this chap-