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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
While the vehicle is being driven, all ve-
hicle occupants should have the seatback
upright, sit well back in the seat and prop-
erly wear the seat belts provided.
CAUTION
Do not drive the vehicle unless the
occupants are properly seated. Do
not allow any passengers to sit on
top of a folded- down seatback, or
in the luggage compartment or car-
go area. Persons not properly
seated and/or not properly re-
strained by seat belts can be se-
verely injured in the event of emer-
gency braking or a collision.
During driving, do not allow any
passengers to stand up or move
around between seats. Otherwise,
severe injuries can occur in the
event of emergency braking or a
collision.
Driver seat
CAUTION
The SRS driver airbag deploys with
considerable force, and can cause
death or serious injury especially if
the driver is very close to the airbag.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSAº) advises:
Since the risk zone for driver airbag
is the first 50Ð75 mm (2Ð3 in.) of
inflation, placing yourself 250 mm (10
in.) from your driver airbag provides
you with a clear margin of safety.
This distance is measured from the
center of the steering wheel to your
breastbone. If you sit less than 250
mm (10 in.) away now, you can
change your driving position in sever-
al ways:
Move your seat to the rear as far
as you can while still reaching the
pedals comfortably.
Slightly recline the back of the
seat. Although vehicle designs vary,
many drivers can achieve the 250
mm (10 in.) distance, even with the
driver seat all the way forward, sim-
ply by reclining the back of the
seat somewhat. If reclining the back
of your seat makes it hard to see
the road, raise yourself by using a
firm, non- slippery cushion, or raise
the seat if your vehicle has that
feature.
If your steering wheel is adjustable,
tilt it downward. This points the air-
bag toward your chest instead of
your head and neck.
The seat should be adjusted as rec-
ommended by NHTSA above, while
still maintaining control of the foot
pedals, steering wheel, and your view
of the instrument panel controls.
Seats Front seatsÐ
ÐFront seat precautions
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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
Deployment of the airbags happens in a
fraction of a second, so the airbags must
inflate with considerable force. While the
system is designed to reduce serious inju-
ries, primarily to the head and chest, it
may also cause other, less severe injuries
to the face, chest, arms and hands. These
are usually in the nature of minor burns
or abrasions and swelling, but the force of
a deploying airbag can cause more seri-
ous injuries, especially if an occupant's
hands, arms, chest or head is in close
proximity to the airbag module at the time
of deployment. This is why it is important
for the occupant to: avoid placing any
object or part of the body between the
occupant and the airbag module; sit
straight and well back into the seat; wear
the available seat belt properly; and sit as
far as possible from the airbag module,
while still maintaining control of the ve-
hicle.
Parts of the airbag module (steering wheel
hub, airbag cover and inflator) may be hot
for several minutes after deployment, so
do not touch! The airbags inflate only
once. The windshield may be damaged by
absorbing some of the force of the inflat-
ing airbag.CAUTION
The driver or front passenger who is
too close to the steering wheel or
dashboard during airbag deployment
can be killed or seriously injured.
Toyota strongly recommends that:
The driver sit as far back as pos-
sible from the steering wheel while
still maintaining control of the ve-
hicle.
The front passenger sit as far back
as possible from the dashboard.
All vehicle occupants be properly
restrained using the available seat
belts.
For instructions and precautions con-
cerning the seating position, see
ÐFront seat precautionsº on page
30 in this Section.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.
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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
Toyota strongly recommends that all
infants and children be placed in
the rear seat of the vehicle and be
properly restrained.
Do not allow a child to stand up or
kneel on the front passenger seat,
since the front passenger airbag
could inflate with considerable
speed and force. Otherwise, the
child may be killed or seriously in-
jured.
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
restraintº on page 69 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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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
Do not modify or remove any wir-
ing. Do not modify, remove, strike
or open any components such as
the steering wheel pad, steering
wheel, column cover, dashboard
near the front passenger airbag,
front passenger airbag cover, front
passenger airbag or airbag sensor
assembly. Doing so may prevent the
front airbag system from activating
correctly, cause sudden activation
of the system or disable the sys-
tem, which could result in death or
serious injury.
Failure to follow these instructions
can result in death or serious injury.
Consult your Toyota dealer about any
repair and modification.NOTICE
Do not perform any of the following changes without consulting yourToyota dealer. Such changes caninterfere with proper operation of the
SRS front airbag system in somecases.
Installation of electronic devices
such as a mobile two- way radio,cassette tape player or compactdisc player
Modification of the suspension sys-tem
Modification of the front end struc-ture
Attachment of a grille guard (bullbar, kangaroo bar, etc.), snowplow,winches or any other equipment to
the front end
Repairs made on or near the frontfenders, front end structure, con-sole, steering column, steeringwheel or dashboard near the front
passenger airbag
This indicator comes on when the igni-
tion key is turned to the ONº position.
It goes off after about 6 seconds. This
means the SRS front airbags are oper-
ating properly.
This warning light system monitors the
airbag sensor assembly, front airbag sen-
sors, side and curtain shield airbag sen-
sors, curtain shield airbag sensors, driv-
er 's seat position sensor, driver 's seat belt
buckle switch, seat belt pretensioner as-
semblies, inflators, warning light, intercon-
necting wiring and power sources. (For
details, see Service reminder indicators
and warning buzzersº on page 109 in Sec-
tion 1- 6.)
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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
If any of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction of the airbags
or seat belt pretensioners. Contact your
Toyota dealer as soon as possible.
The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the ONº posi-
tion or remains on for more than 6
seconds.
The light comes on while driving.
In the following cases, contact your Toyota
dealer as soon as possible:
The SRS front airbags have been in-
flated.
The front of the vehicle (shaded in the
illustration) was involved in an accident
that was not severe enough to cause
the SRS front airbags to inflate.
The pad section of the steering wheel
or front passenger airbag cover
(shaded in the illustration) is scratched,
cracked, or otherwise damaged.
NOTICE
Do not disconnect the battery cables
before contacting your Toyota dealer.
The SRS (Supplemental Restraint Sys-
tem) side airbags and curtain shield air-
bags are designed to provide further
protection for the driver, front passen-
ger and rear outside passengers in
addition to the primary safety protec-
tion provided by the seat belts.
SRS side airbags and curtain
shield airbags
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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS AND
CONTROLS
Steering wheel and Mirrors
Tilt steering wheel90
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .\
. . . . . .
Outside rear view mirrors 90
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
.
Anti- glare inside rear view mirror 92
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Auto anti- glare inside rear view mirror 93
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sun visors 94
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SECTION 1- 4
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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
To change the steering wheel angle,
hold the steering wheel, push down the
lock release lever, tilt the steering
wheel to the desired angle and return
the lever to its original position.
CAUTION
Do not adjust the steering wheel
while the vehicle is moving. Doing
so may cause the driver to mishan-
dle the vehicle and an accident may
occur resulting in death or serious
injuries.
After adjusting the steering wheel,
try moving it up and down to make
sure it is locked in position.
Adjust the mirror so that you can just
see the side of your vehicle in the mir-
ror.
Be careful when judging the size or dis-
tance of any object seen in the outside
rear view mirror on the passenger 's side
because it is a convex mirror. Any object
seen in a convex mirror will look smaller
and farther away than when seen in a flat
mirror.
On some models, when you push the rear
window defogger switch, the heater panels
in the outside rear view mirrors will quick-
ly clear the mirror surface. (See Rear
window and outside rear view mirror de-
foggersº on page 104 in Section 1- 5.)
Tilt steering wheelOutside rear view mirrorsÐ
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2005 RAV4 from Sep. '04 Prod. (OM42570U)
STARTºÐStarter motor on. The key
will return to the ONº position when
released.
For starting tips, see page 227 in Section
3.
It is not a malfunction even if the needle
of the tachometer, fuel gauge or engine
coolant temperature gauge returns to the
bottom position when the ignition switch is
turned to the STARTº position.
ONºÐEngine on and all accessories
on.
This is the normal driving position.It is not a malfunction even if the needle
on the speedometer may move when the
ignition switch is turned to the ONº posi-
tion.
ACCºÐAccessories such as the radio
operate, but the engine is off.
If you leave the key in the ACCº or
LOCKº position and open the driver's
door, a buzzer will remind you to remove
the key.
LOCKºÐEngine is off and the steering
wheel is locked. The key can be re-
moved only at this position.
You must push in the key to turn it from
ACCº to the LOCKº position. On vehicles
with an automatic transmission, the selec-
tor lever must be in the Pº position be-
fore pushing the key.
Vehicles with engine immobilizer sys-
temÐOnce you remove the key, the en-
gine immobilizer system is automatically
set. (See Engine immobilizer systemº on
page 13 in Section 1- 2.)
When starting the engine, the key may
seem stuck at the LOCKº position. To
free it, first be sure the key is pushed all
the way in, and then rock the steering
wheel slightly while turning the key gently.
CAUTION
For manual transmission:
Never remove the key when the ve-
hicle is moving, as this will lock the
steering wheel and result in loss of
steering control.
NOTICE
Do not leave the key in the ONº
position if the engine is not running.The battery will discharge and theignition could be damaged.
Ignition switch with steering
lock