2006 Acura TL Page 91

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You’ll f ind many saf ety
recommendations throughout this
section, and throughout this manual.
Therecommendationsonthispage
are the ones we consider to be the
most important.
Excessive speed is a major f actor in
crash injuries and deaths. Generally,
the higher the speed, the greater the
risk, but serious injuries can also
occur at lower speeds. Never drive
f aster than is saf e f or current
conditions, regardless of the
maximum speed posted.
Having a tire blowout or a
mechanical f ailure can be extremely
hazardous. To reduce the possibility
of such problems, check your tire
pressures and condition f requently,
and perform all regularly scheduled
maintenance (see page ).
A seat belt is your best protection in
all types of collisions. Airbags are
designed to supplement seat belts,
not replace them. So even though
your vehicle is equipped with airbags,
make sure you and your passengers
always wear your seat belts, and
wear them properly (see page ). While airbags can save lives, they
can cause serious or fatal injuries to
occupants who sit too close to them,
or are not properly restrained.
Inf ants, young children, and short
adults are at the greatest risk. Be
sure to f ollow all instructions and
warnings in this manual.
Alcohol and driving don’t mix. Even
one drink can reduce your ability to
respond to changing conditions, and
your reaction time gets worse with
every additional drink. So don’t drink
and drive, and don’t let your f riends
drink and drive, either.
Children age 12 and under should
ride properly restrained in a back
seat. Infants and small children
should be restrained in a child seat.
Larger children should use a booster
and a lap/shoulder belt until they
canusethebeltproperlywithouta
booster (see pages ). 16
49 52 209
Important Saf ety Precautions
Always Wear Your Seat BeltControl Your Speed
K eep Your Vehicle in Saf e
Condition
Restrain All Children Be Aware of Airbag Hazards
Don’t Drink and Drive
8

Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in all seating positions.
However, you and your passengers
can’t take f ull advantage of these
f eatures unless you remain sitting in
a proper position and
. In f act, some saf ety
f eatures can contribute to injuries if
they are not used properly.
The f ollowing pages explain how you
cantakeanactiveroleinprotecting
yourself and your passengers. Seat belts are the single most effectivesafetydeviceforadultsand
larger children. (Inf ants and smaller
children must be properly restrained
in child seats.)
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces require you to
wear seat belts.When properly worn, seat belts:
Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle’s built-in saf ety f eatures.
Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including f rontal,
side and rear impacts, and
rollovers.
Your seat belt system also includes
an indicator on the instrument panel
and a beeper to remind you and your
passengers to f asten your seat belts.
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Seat Belts
Why Wear Seat Belt s
always wear
your seat belts
10
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
if you have airbags.
Be sure you and your
passengers always wear seat
belts and wear them properly.

Help keep you f rom being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against other occupants.
Keep you f rom being thrown out
of the vehicle.
Help keep you in a good position
should the airbags ever deploy. A
good position reduces the risk of
injury f rom an inf lating airbag and
allows you to get the best
advantage f rom the airbag.
Of course, seat belts cannot
completely protect you in every
crash.Butinmostcases,seatbelts
can reduce your risk of serious
injury.
Always wear your seat belt, and
make sure you wear it properly. Your vehicle has a supplemental
restraint system (SRS) with f ront
airbags to help protect the heads and
chests of the driver and a front seat
passenger during a moderate to
severe f rontal collision (see page
f or more inf ormation on how
your f ront airbags work). Your vehicle also has side airbags to
help protect the upper torso of the
driver or a f ront seat passenger
during a moderate to severe side
impact (see page f or more
information on how your side airbags
work).
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CONT INUED
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
What You Should Do:
Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
11

They are designed to supplement
the seat belts.
The most important things you need
to know about your airbags are:
The rest of this section gives more
detailed inf ormation about how you
can maximize your saf ety.
Your vehicle also has side curtain
airbags to help protect the heads of
the driver, f ront passenger, and
passengers in the outer rear seating
positions during a moderate to
severe side impact (see page f or
more inf ormation on how your side
curtain airbags work). Remember however, that no saf ety
system can prevent all injures or
deaths that can occur in a severe
crash, even when seat belts are
properly worn and the airbags deploy.Always wear
your seat belt properly, and sit
upright and as f ar back f rom the
steering wheel as possible while
allowing f ull control of the vehicle. A
f ront passenger should move their
seat as far back from the dashboard
as possible.
To do
their job, airbags must inf late with
tremendous f orce. So while
airbags help save lives, they can
cause minor injuries or more
serious or even fatal injuries if
occupants are not properly
restrained or sitting properly.
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Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Airbags do not replace seat belts.
A irbags of f er no prot ect ion in rearimpact s, or minor f ront al or sidecollisions. What you should do:
A irbags can pose hazards.
12

µAfter everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors are closed
and locked.
The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver, adult passengers
and teenage children who are large
enough and mature enough to drive
or ride in the f ront seat.
Locking the doors also helps prevent
an outsider f rom unexpectedly
opening a door when you come to a
stop. Locking the doors reduces the
chance of someone being thrown out
of the vehicle during a crash, and it
helps prevent passengers f rom
accidentally opening a door and
f alling out. If any door or the trunk is not closed
tightly, the multi-information display
reminds you to close the open
door(s) or the trunk bef ore you start
driving (see page ).
See page f or how to lock the
doors.
See pages f or important
guidelines on how to properly
protect inf ants, small children, and
larger children who ride in your
vehicle.
Adjust the driver’s seat as far to the
rear as possible while allowing you to
maintain f ull control of the vehicle.
Have your f ront passenger adjust
their seat as f ar to the rear as
possible.
If you sit too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard, you can be
seriously injured by an inf lating f ront
airbag, or by striking the steering
wheel or dashboard.
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CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
Adjust the Front Seats
Close and L ock the Doors
Introduction 2.
1.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
13

Adjust the driver’s seat-back to a
comf ortable, upright position,
leaving ample space between your
chest and the airbag cover in the
center of the steering wheel.
Passengers with adjustable seat-
backs should also adjust their seat-
back to a comf ortable, upright
position.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport
Canada recommend that drivers
allow at least 10 inches (25 cm)
between the center of the steering
wheel and the chest. In addition to
adjusting the seat, you can adjust the
steering in and out and up and down
(see page ).
If you cannot get f ar enough away
f rom the steering wheel and still
reach the controls, we recommend
that you investigate whether some
type of adaptive equipment may help.
See page f or how to adjust the
f ront seats.
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98
Protecting A dults and Teens
Adjust the Seat-Backs
3.
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Sitting too close to a front
airbag can result in serious
injury or death if the front
airbags inflate.
Always sit as far back from the
front airbags as possible.

Adjust the driver’s head restraint so
the back of your head rests against
the center of the restraint.
Have passengers with adjustable
restraints adjust their restraints
properly as well. A taller person
should adjust their restraint as high
as possible.
Reclining a seat-back so that the
shoulder part of the belt no longer
rests against the occupant’s chest
reduces the protective capability of
the belt. It also increases the chance
of sliding under the belt in a crash
and being seriously injured. The
farther a seat-back is reclined, the
greater the risk of injury.
See page f or how to adjust the
seat-backs.
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CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
A djust the Head Restraints
4.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
15
Reclining the seat-back too far
can result in serious injury or
death in a crash.
Adjust the seat-back to an
upright position, and sit well
back in the seat.

Properly adjusted head restraints
will help protect occupants f rom
whiplash and other crash injuries.
See page f or how to adjust the
head restraints.Insert the latch plate into the buckle,
then tug on the belt to make sure the
belt is securely latched. Also check
that the belt is not twisted, because a
twisted belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash.
Position the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across your hips,
then pull up on the shoulder part of
thebeltsothelappartfitssnugly.
This lets your strong pelvic bones
take the force of a crash and reduces
the chance of internal injuries.
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Protecting A dults and Teens
Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
5.
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Improperly positioning head
restraints reduces their
effectiveness and you can be
seriously injured in a crash.
Make sure head restraints are
in place and positioned properly
before driving.