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Important information about your Toyota
Occupant restraint systems
Toyota encourages you and your family to take the time to
read Section 1−3 of this Owner’s Manual carefully. In
terms of helping you understand how you can receive the
maximum benefit of the occupant restraint systems this
vehicle provides, Section 1 −3 of this Owner ’s Manual is
the most important Section for you and your family to
read.
Section 1 −3 describes the function and operation concern-
ing seats, seat belts, SRS airbags and child restraint sys-
tems of this vehicle and some potential hazards you
should be aware of. These systems work together along
with the overall structure of this vehicle in order to provide
occupant restraint in the event of a crash. The effect of
each system is enhanced when it is used properly and
together with other systems. No single occupant restraint
system can, by itself, provide you or your family with the
equal level of restraint which these systems can provide
when used together. That is why it is important for you and
your family to understand the purpose and proper use of
each of these systems and how they relate to each other.
The purpose of all occupant restraint systems is to help
reduce the possibility of death or serious injury in the
event of a collision. None of these systems, either individ-
ually or together, can ensure that there is no injury in the
event of collision. However, the more you know about
these systems and how to use them properly, the greater
your chances become of surviving an accident without
death or serious injury.
Seat belts provide the primary restraint to all occupants of
the vehicle, and every occupant of the vehicle should wear
seat belts properly at all times. Children should always be
secured in child restraint systems that are appropriate for
their age and size. SRS (Supplemental Restraint System)
airbags are, as their names imply, designed to work with,
and be supplemental to, seat belts and are not substitutes
for them. SRS airbags can be very effective in reducing
the risk of head and chest injuries by preventing contact of
the head and chest with interior portions of the vehicle.
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OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS AND
CONTROLS
Occupant restraint systems
Seats 42
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Front seats 42
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Rear seats 48
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Head restraints 60
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Armrest 61
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Seat heaters 62
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Seat belts 63
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SRS airbags 73
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Roll sensing of curtain shield airbags off switch 94
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Child restraint 95
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SECTION 1 3
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Toyota strongly urges that the driver and
passengers in the vehicle be properly re-
strained at all times with the seat belts
provided. Failure to do so could increase
the chance of injury and/or the severity of
injury in accidents.
The seat belts provided for your vehicle
are designed for people of adult size,
large enough to properly wear them.
Child. Use a child restraint system ap-
propriate for the child until the child be-
comes large enough to properly wear the
vehicle’s seat belts. See “Child restraint”
on page 95 in this Section for details.
If a child is too large for a child restraint
system, the child s hould sit in the rear
seat and must be restrained using the
vehicle’s seat belt. According to accident
statistics, the child is safer when properly
restrained in the rear seat than in the
front seat.
If a child must sit in the front seat, the
seat belts should be worn properly. If an
accident occurs and the seat belts are not
worn properly, the force of the rapid infla-
tion of the airbag may cause death or
serious injury to the child. Do not allow any children to stand up or
kneel on either rear or front seats. An
unrestrained child could suffer serious in-
jury or death during emergency braking or
a collision. Also, do not let the child sit
on your lap. Holding a child in your arms
does not provide sufficient restraint.
Pregnant woman.
Toyota recommends the
use of a seat belt. Ask your doctor for
specific recommendations. The lap belt
should be worn securely and as low as
possible over the hips and not on the
waist.
Injured person. Toyota recommends the
use of a seat belt. Depending on the inju-
ry, first check with your doctor for specific
recommendation.CAUTION
Persons should ride in their seats
properly wearing their seat belts
whenever the vehicle is moving.
Otherwise, they are much more likely
to suffer serious bodily injury or
death in the event of sudden braking
or a collision.
When using the seat belts, observe
the following:
Use the belt for only one person at
a time. Do not use a single belt for
two or more people—even children.
Avoid reclining the seatback any
more than needed. The seat belts
provide maximum protection in a
frontal or rear collision when the
driver and the front passenger are
sitting up straight and well back in
the seats. If you are reclined, the
lap belt may slide past your hips
and apply restraint forces directly
to the abdomen or your neck may
contact the shoulder belt. In the
event of a frontal co llision, the
more the seat is reclined, the great-
er the risk of death or personal in-
jury.
Seat belts—
—Seat belt precautions
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Be careful not to damage the belt
webbing or hardware. Take care that
they do not get caught or pinched
in the seat or side doors.
Inspect the belt system periodically.
Check for cuts, fraying, and loose
parts. Damaged parts should be re-
placed. Do not disassemble or
modify the system.
Keep the belts clean and dry. If
they need cleaning, use a mild soap
solution or lukewarm water. Never
use bleach, dye, or abrasive clean-
ers, or allow them to come into
contact with the belt—they may se-
verely weaken the belts. (See
“Cleaning the interior” on page 357
in Section 5.)
Replace the belt assembly (includ-
ing bolts) if it has been used in a
severe impact. The entire assembly
should be replaced even if damage
is not obvious.
Ta b
Buckle
Adjust the seat as needed and sit up
straight and well back in the seat. To
fasten your belt, pull it out of the re-
tractor and insert the tab into the
buckle.
You will hear a click when the tab locks
into the buckle.
The seat belt length automatically adjusts
to your size and the seat position.
The retractor will lock the belt during a
sudden stop or on impact. It also may
lock if you lean forward too quickly. A
slow, easy motion will allow the belt to
extend, and you can move around freely. When a passenger ’s shoulder belt is com-
pletely extended and is then retracted
even slightly, the belt is locked in that
position and cannot be extended. This fea-
ture is used to hold the child restraint
system securely. (For details, see “Child
restraint” on page 95 in this Section.) To
free the belt again, fully retract the belt
and then pull the belt out once more.
If the seat belt cannot be pulled out of the
retractor, firmly pull the belt and release
it. You will then be able to smoothly pull
the belt out of the retractor.CAUTION
After inserting the tab, make sure
the tab and buckle are locked and
that the belt is not twisted.
Do not insert coins, clips, etc. in
the buckle as this may prevent you
from properly latching the tab and
buckle.
If the seat belt does not function
normally, immediately contact your
Toyota dealer. Do not use the seat
until the seat belt is fixed, because
it cannot protect an adult occupant
or your child from injury.
—Fastening front and rear
seat belts
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Make sure the front passenger oc-
cupant classification indicator light
indicates “ON” when using the seat
belt extender for the front passen-
ger seat. If the indicator light indi-
cates “OFF”, disconnect the extend-
er tongue from the seat belt buckle,
then reconnect the seat belt. Recon-
nect the seat belt extender after
making sure the indicator light indi-
cates “ON”. If you use the seat belt
extender while the indicator light
indicates “OFF”, the front passen-
ger airbag and side airbag on the
front passenger side may not acti-
vate correctly, which could cause
death or serious injury in the event
of collision.
Be sure to wear the seat belt with-
out the seat belt extender if you
can fasten the seat belt without the
extender.
Do not use the seat belt extender
when installing a child restraint
system on the front or rear passen-
ger seat. If installing a child re-
straint system with the seat belt
extender connected to the seat belt,
the seat belt will not securely hold
the child restraint system, which
could cause death or serious injury
to the child or other passengers in
the event of collision.
To connect the extender to the seat
belt, insert the tab into the seat belt
buckle so that the “PRESS” signs on
the buckle release buttons of the ex-
tender and the seat belt are both facing
outward as shown.
You will hear a click when the tab locks
into the buckle.
When releasing the seat belt, press on
the buckle release button on the extender,
not on the seat belt. This helps prevent
damage to the vehicle interior and extend-
er itself.
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CAUTION
The SRS front airbag system is de-
signed only as a supplement to the
primary protection of the driver and
front passenger seat belt systems.
The driver and front passenger can
be killed or seriously injured by the
inflating airbags if they do not wear
the available seat belts properly.
During sudden braking just before
a collision, an unrestrained driver
or front passenger can move for-
ward into direct contact with or
close proximity to the airbag which
may then deploy during the colli-
sion. To ensure maximum protection
in an accident, the driver and all
passengers in the vehicle must
wear their seat belts properly. Wear-
ing a seat belt properly during an
accident reduces the chances of
death or serious injury or being
thrown out of the vehicle. For in-
structions and precautions concern-
ing the seat belt system, see “Seat
belts” on page 63 in this Section.
Improperly seated and/or restrained
infants and children can be killed
or seriously injured by the deploy-
ing airbags. An infant or child who
is too small to use a seat belt
should be properly secured using a
child restraint system. Toyota
strongly recommends that all in-
fants and children be placed in the
rear seat of the vehicle and proper-
ly restrained. The rear seat is the
safest for infants and children. For
instructions concerning the installa-
tion of a child restraint system, see
“Child restraint” on page 95 in this
Section.The SRS front airbags are designed to
deploy in severe (usually frontal) colli-
sions where the magnitude and duration
of the forward deceleration of the ve-
hicle exceeds the designed threshold
level.
The SRS front airbags will deploy if the
severity of the impact is above the de-
signed threshold level, comparable to an
approximate 25 km/h (15 mph) collision
when the vehicle has the impact straight
into a fixed barrier that does not move or
deform.
However, this threshold velocity will be
considerably higher if the vehicle strikes
an object, such as a parked vehicle or
sign pole, which can move or deform on
impact, or if the vehicle is involved in an
underride collision (e.g. a collision in
which the front of the vehicle “underrides”,
or goes under, the bed of a truck, etc.).
It is possible that in some collisions
where the forward deceleration of the ve-
hicle is very close to the designed thresh-
old level, the SRS front airbags and the
seat belt pretensioners may not activate
together.
Always wear your seat belts properly.
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Do not sit on the edge of the seat
or lean against the dashboard when
the vehicle is in use, since the
front passenger airbag could inflate
with considerable speed and force.
Anyone who is up against, or very
close to, an airbag when it inflates,
can be killed or seriously injured.
Sit up straight and well back in the
seat, and always use your seat belt
properly.Toyota strongly recommends that all
infants and children be placed in
the rear seat of the vehicle and be
properly restrained.
Do not hold a child on your lap or
in your arms. Use a child restraint
system in the rear seat. For instruc-
tions concerning the installation of
a child restraint system, see “Child
restraint” on page 95 in this Sec-
tion.
Do not put anything or any part of
your body on or in front of the
dashboard or steering wheel pad
that houses the front airbag sys-
tem. They might restrict inflation or
cause death or serious injury as
they are projected rearward by the
force of the deploying airbags. Like-
wise, the driver and front passenger
should not hold objects in their
arms or on their knees.
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CAUTION
The SRS side airbag and curtain
shield airbag system is designed
only as a supplement to the
primary protection of the driver,
front passenger and rear /second
passenger seat belt systems. To
ensure maximum protection in an
accident, the driver and all passen-
gers in the vehicle must wear their
seat belts properly. Wearing a seat
belt properly during an accident
reduces the chances of death or
serious injury or being thrown out
of the vehicle. For instructions and
precautions concerning the seat
belt system, see “Seat belts” on
page 63 in this Section.
Do not allow anyone to lean his/her
head or any part of his/her body
against the door or the area of the
seat, front pillar, rear pillar or roof
side rail from which the SRS side
airbag and curtain shield airbag
deploy even if he/she is a child
seated in the child restraint system.
It is dangerous if the SRS side air-
bag and curtain shield airbag in-
flate, and the impact of the deploy-
ing airbag could cause death or se-
rious injury to the occupant.Improperly seated and/or restrained
infants and children can be killed
or seriously injured by the deploy-
ing airbags. An infant or child who
is too small to use a seat belt
should be properly secured using a
child restraint system. Toyota
strongly recommends that all in-
fants and children be placed in the
rear seats of the vehicle and prop-
erly restrained. The rear seats are
the safest for infants and children.
For instructions concerning the
installation of a child restraint sys-
tem, see “Child restraint” on page
95 in this Section.