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18
12B017
When closing the back door, the inside
handle can be used to make the reach
easier.
To close the back door, lower it and press
down on it. After closing the back door,
try pulling it up to make sure it is secure-
ly closed.
See “Cargo and luggage” on page 135 for
precautions to observe when loading lug-
gage.
CAUTION
Keep the back door closed while driv-
ing. This not only keeps the luggage
from being thrown out but also pre-
vents exhaust gases from entering
the vehicle.
Hood
12B018
To open the hood:1. Pull the hood lock release lever. The hood will spring up slightly.
CAUTION
Before driving, be sure that the hood
is closed and securely locked. Other-
wise, the hood may open unexpected-
ly while driving and an accident may
occur.
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20
Fuel tank cap
12B021
This indicates that the fuel filler door
is on the left side of your vehicle.
12B022
1. To open the fuel filler door, pull thelever up.
When refueling, turn off the engine.
CAUTION
Do not smoke, cause sparks or al-
low open flames when refueling.
The fumes are flammable.
When opening the cap, do not re-
move the cap quickly. In hot weath-
er, fuel under pressure could cause
injury by spraying out of the filler
neck if the cap is suddenly re-
moved.
12B023
2. To remove the fuel tank cap, turnthe cap slowly counterclockwise,
then pause slightly before removing
it.
It is not unusual to hear a slight swoosh
when the cap is opened. When installing,
turn the cap clockwise till you hear a
click.
If the cap is not tightened securely, the
malfunction indicator lamp comes on.
Make sure the cap is tightened securely.
The indicator lamp goes off after driving
several times. If the indicator lamp does
not go off, contact your Scion dealer as
soon as possible.
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24
Seats
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 (“NHTSA”) advises:
Since the risk zone for driver airbag
is the first 50 75 mm (2 3 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.
Front seats—
—Front seat precautions
Page 32 of 234

26
1. SEAT POSITION ADJUSTING LEVER
Hold the center of the lever and pull it
up. Then slide the seat to the desired
position with slight body pressure and
release the lever.
2. SEATBACK ANGLE ADJUSTING LEVER
Lean forward and pull the lever up.
Then lean back to the desired angle
and release the lever.
CAUTION
To reduce the risk of sliding under
the lap belt during a collision, avoid
reclining the seatback any more than
needed. The seat belts provide maxi-
mum 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. In the event
of a frontal collision, the more the
seat is reclined, the greater the risk
of personal injury.1. Remove the head restraint. Hold the center of the seat position adjusting
lever and pull it up. Then slide the
seat further forward than the front
most lock position.2. Pull the seatback angle adjusting le-ver to unlock and push down the
seatback.
When returning the seatback upright, be
careful to not get hit by the seatback
which will re bound with considerable
spring force.
After returning the seat to its original
position, be certain to replace the head
restraint.
—Flattening seatbacks
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31
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 46.) 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
Scion dealer. Do not use the seat
until the seat belt is fixed, because
it cannot protect an adult occupant
or your child from injury.
To o h i g h
Keep as low on
hips as possible
Ta k e u p
slack
Adjust the position of the lap and
shoulder belts.
Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips—not on your waist, then ad-
just it to a snug fit by pulling the shoulder
portion upward through the latch plate.
CAUTION
Both high positioned lap belts and
loose fitting belts could cause seri-
ous injuries due to sliding under
the lap belt during a collision or
other unintended event. Keep the
lap belt positioned as low on hips
as possible.
Do not place the shoulder belt un-
der your arm.
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32
Seat belts with an adjustable shoulder
anchor—
Adjust the shoulder anchor position to
your size.
To raise: Slide the anchor up.
To lower: Push in the lock release button
and slide the anchor down.
After adjustment make sure the anchor is
locked in position.
CAUTION
Always make sure the shoulder belt
is positioned across the center of
your shoulder. The belt should be
kept away from your neck, but not
falling off your shoulder. Failure to
do so could reduce the amount of
protection in an accident and cause
serious injuries in a collision.
13A008
To release the belt, press the buckle
release button and allow the belt to
retract.
If the belt does not retract smoothly, pull
it out and check for kinks or twists. Then
make sure it remains untwisted as it re-
tracts.
CAUTION
Do not separate the buckle with the
light gray buckle release button.
Otherwise, the seat belt may not work
properly. See the information in the
following columns.
Page 39 of 234
33
REAR CENTER SEAT BELT
The rear center seat belt is a 3−point type
restraint with two buckles. Both seat belt
buckles must be correctly located and se-
curely latched for proper operation
Make sure buckle 1 is securely latched
for ready use of the center seat belt.
13A045
Two buckles and tabs for rear center
seat belt
The two buckles for the rear center seat
belt are distinguished with colors of the
buckle release button. Also the two tabs
have different shapes to prevent the belt
from being buckle in the wrong place.
Buckle 1—Matches the light gray tab
Buckle 2—Matches the interior color
tab
CAUTION
Make sure that both buckles are cor-
rectly located and securely latched.
Failure to properly match the buckle
and tab may cause severe injury in
case of an accident or a co llision.
Page 42 of 234

36
CAUTION
After inserting the tab, make sure
the tab and buckle are locked and
that the lap and shoulder portions
of the belt and the seat belt extend-
er are 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
Scion dealer. Do not use the seat
until the seat belt is fixed, because
it cannot protect an adult occupant
or your child from injury.
—Seat belt pretensioners
Both front seats are equipped with seat
belt pretensioners and are designed to
be activated in response to a severe
frontal impact.
When the sensor detects a severe frontal
impact, the front seat belts are quickly
drawn back by the retractors so that the
belts snugly restrain the occupants.
The seat belt pretensioners are activated
even with no passenger in the front seat.
The seat belt pretensioners and SRS air-
bags may not operate together in all colli-
sions.The seat belt pretensioner system con-
sists mainly of the following components,
and their locations are shown in the il-
lustration.1. Front airbag sensors
2. SRS warning light
3. Seat belt pretensioner assemblies
4. Airbag sensor assembly
The seat belt pretensioners are controlled
by the airbag sensor assembly. The airbag
sensor assembly consists of a safing sen-
sor and airbag sensor.