2005 SUBARU LEGACY Back seats

1-1
1
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
Front seats .................................................... 1-2 Manual seat ....................................................... 1-3
Power seat (if equipped) .................................. 1-5
Reclining the seatback ..................................... 1-6
Head restraint adjustment ................................ 1-8
Active head restraint ........................................ 1-8
Lumbar support (if equipped) .......................... 1-9
Seat heater (if equipped) .............................. 1-10
Rear seats ..................................................... 1-11 Folding down the rear seat – Station wagon .. 1-12
Head restraint adjustment ................................ 1-12
Armrest (if equipped) ................................... 1-14 Loading long objects (Sedan) .......................... 1-15
Seatbelts ....................................................... 1-16 Seatbelt safety tips ........................................... 1-16
Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR) .............. 1-18
Automatic/Emergency Locking Retractor (A/ELR) ............................................................ 1-18
Seatbelt warning light and chime .................... 1-19
Fastening the seatbelt ...................................... 1-21
Seatbelt maintenance ....................................... 1-33
Front seatbelt pretensioners ....................... 1-33 System monitors ............................................... 1-35
System servicing .............................................. 1-36
Precautions against vehicle modification ...... 1-37
Child restraint systems ................................ 1-38 Where to place a child restraint system ......... 1-40
Choosing a child restraint system .................. 1-41
Installing child restraint systems with A/ELR seatbelt ............................................................ 1-42 Installing a booster seat ................................... 1-47
Installation of child restraint systems by use
of lower and tether anchorages (LATCH) .... 1-49
Top tether anchorages ..................................... 1-55
*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag) ........................................... 1-59Vehicle with SRS airbags and lap/shoulder restraints for driver, front passenger, and
window-side rear passengers ....................... 1-59
Subaru advanced frontal airbag system ........ 1-65
SRS side airbag and SRS curtain airbag ........ 1-80
SRS airbag system monitors ........................... 1-89
SRS airbag system servicing .......................... 1-91
Precautions against vehicle modification ...... 1-92

1-2
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbagsFront seats
"
Never adjust the seat while driving to avoid
the possibility of loss of vehicle control and of
personal injury. " Before adjusting the seat, make sure the
hands and feet of rear seat passengers are
clear of the adjusting mechanism. " Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when
the occupant sits well back and upright in the
seat. To reduce the risk of sliding under the
seatbelt in a collision, the front seatbacks
should be always used in the upright position
while the vehicle is running. If the front seat-
backs are not used in the upright position in a
collision, 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 in-
ternal injury or death." The SRS airbags deploy with considerable
speed and force. Occupants who are out of
proper position when the SRS airbag deploys
could suffer very serious injuries. Because the
SRS airbag needs enough space for deploy-
ment, the driver should always sit upright and well back in the seat as far from the steering
wheel as practical while still maintaining full ve-
hicle control and the front passenger should
move the seat as far back as possible and situpright and well back in the seat.
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, especially if
they are 12 years of age and under and are not
HS1034BA

1-3
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
– CONTINUED –
restrained or improperly restrained. Because
children are lighter and weaker than adults,
their risk of being injured from deployment is
greater. For that reason, we strongly recom-
mend 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 restraint device
or in a seatbelt, whichever is appropriate for the
child’s age, height and weight.
Secure ALL types of child restraint devices (in-
cluding forward facing child seat) in the REAR
seats at all times.
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILDSEAT 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 child restraint systems, see the “Child
restraint systems” section in this chapter. !
Manual seat
! Fore and aft adjustment
Pull the lever upward and slide the seat to the desired
position. Then release the lever and move the seat
back and forth to make sure that it is securely locked
into place.
UB1500BA

1-8
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
!
Head restraint adjustment
To raise the head restraint, pull it up. To lower it, push
the head restraint down while pressing the release
button on the top of the seatback.
The head restraint should be adjusted so that the cen-
ter of the head restraint is closest to the top of the oc-
cupant’s ears.
Never drive the vehicle with the head restraints
removed because they are designed to reduce
the risk of serious neck injury in the event that
the vehicle is struck from the rear.
! Active head restraint
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 adjusted so
that the center of the head restraint is closest to the top
of the occupant’s ears.
UB1521BA
HS1105BA

1-11
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
– CONTINUED –
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.
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.
HG1044BA
HS8005BA

1-13
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
– CONTINUED –
the vehicle is struck from the rear.
! Rear windows side seating position
To raise the head restraint, pull it up.
To lower it, push the head restraint down while press-
ing the release button on the top of the seatback.
The head restraint should be adjusted so that the cen-
ter of the head restraint is closest to the top of the oc-
cupant’s ears.
When the seats are not occupied, lower the head re-
straints to improve rearward visibility.
The head restraint is not intended to be used at
the lowest position. Before sitting on the seat,
raise the head restraint to the first or second
click position depending on your sitting height.
! Rear center seating position
To raise the head restraint, pull it up.
To lower it, push the head restraint down while press-
ing the release button on the top of the seatback.
When the rear center seating position is occupied,
UB1529BA
UB1523BA

1-17
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
– CONTINUED –
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 all these reasons, we
strongly recommend that ALL children (includ-
ing those in child seats and those that have out-
grown child restraint devices) sit in the REAR
seat properly restrained at all times in a child
restraint device or in a seatbelt, whichever is
appropriate 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-
ter. Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and di-
agnostic module, which will record the use of the seat-
belt(s) by the driver and/or front passenger when any
of the SRS frontal, side and curtain airbags deploys. !
Infants or small children
Use a child restraint system that is suitable for your ve-
hicle. See information on “Child restraint systems” in
this chapter. ! Children
If a child is too big for a child restraint system, the child
should sit in the rear seat and be restrained using the
seatbelts. According to accident statistics, children are
safer when properly restrained in the rear seating po-
sitions than in the front seating positions. Never allow
a child to stand up or kneel on the seat.
If the shoulder portion of the belt crosses the face or
neck, move the child closer to the belt buckle to help
provide a good shoulder belt fit. Care must be taken to
securely place the lap belt as low as possible on the
hips and not on the child’s waist. If the shoulder portion
of the belt cannot be properly positioned, a child re-
straint system should be used. Never place the shoul-
der belt under the child’s arm or behind the child’s back.

1-20
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
seconds later (21 seconds after turning ON the ignition
switch), the warning lights will alternate between flash-
ing and steady illumination at 15-second intervals, and
the chime will sound while the warning light(s) is/are
flashing.
Alternate flashing and steady illumination of the warn-
ing lights and sounding of the chime will continue until
both driver and front passenger fasten their seatbelts.
NOTE "
If the driver and/or front passenger unfasten(s)
the seatbelt(s) after fastening, the seatbelt warn-
ing device operates as follows according to the
vehicle speed. "At speeds lower than approximately 9 mph (15
km/h)The warning light(s) for unfastened seatbelt(s)
will alternate between flashing and steady illu-
mination at 15-second intervals. The chime will
not sound. " At approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or higher
speeds The warning light(s) for unfastened seatbelt(s)
will alternate between flashing and steady illu-
mination at 15-second intervals and the chime
will sound while the warning light(s) is/are flash-
ing.
" It is possible to cancel the warning operation that follows the 6-second warning after turning ON
the ignition switch by unfastening and refastening
the driver’s seatbelt. When the ignition switch is
turned ON next time, however, the complete se-
quence of warning operation resumes. For further
details about canceling the warning operation,
please contact your SUBARU dealer.
If there is no passenger on the front passenger’s seat,
the seatbelt warning device for front passenger’s seat
will be deactivated. The front passenger’s occupant
detection system monitors whether or not there is a
passenger on the front passenger’s seat.
Observe the following precautions. Failure to do so
may prevent the device from functioning correctly or
cause the device to fail. "
Do not install any accessory such as a table or TV
onto the seatback. " Do not store a heavy load in the seatback pocket.
" Do not allow the rear seat occupant to place his/her
hands or legs on the front passenger’s seatback, or al-
low him/her to pull the seatback. " Do not use front seats with their backward-forward
position and seatback not being locked into place se-
curely. If any of them are not locked securely, adjust
them again. For adjusting procedure, refer to the
“Manual seat” in the front seats section in Chapter 1 in
this owner’s manual. (Models equipped with manual