2006 DODGE CALIBER Owners Manual

Here are some simple steps you can take to minimize the
risk of harm from a deploying airbag.
1.Children 12 years old and under should always ride
buckled up in a rear seat.
Infants in rear facing child restraints shouldNEVERride
in the front seat of a vehicle with a passenger front airbag.
An airbag deployment can cause severe injury or death to
infants in that position.
Children that are not big enough to properly wear the
vehicle seat belt (see Section on Child Restraints) should
be secured in the rear seat in child restraints or belt-
positioning booster seats. Older children who do not use
child restraints or belt-positioning booster seats should
ride properly buckled up in the rear seat. Never allow
children to slide the shoulder belt behind them or under
their arm.
If a child from 1 to 12 years old must ride in the front
passenger seat because the vehicle is crowded, move the
seat as far back as possible, and use the proper child
restraint. Refer to the section on Child Restraint.You should read the instructions provided with your
child restraint to make sure that you are using it properly.
2.All occupants should wear their lap and shoulder
belts properly.
3.The driver and front passenger seats should be
moved back as far as practical to allow the front airbags
room to inflate.
4.If your vehicle has side airbags, do not lean against
the door, airbags will inflate forcefully into the space
between you and the door.
5. If the airbag system in this vehicle needs to be
modified to accommodate a disabled person, contact the
Customer Center. Phone numbers are provided under9If
You Need Assistance9in Section 9 of this manual.
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 41
2

WARNING!
²Relying on the airbags alone could lead to more
severe injuries in a collision. The airbags work
with your seat belt to restrain you properly. In
some collisions the airbags won't deploy at all.
Always wear your seat belts even though you
have airbags.
²Being too close to the steering wheel or instru-
ment panel during front airbag deployment could
cause serious injury. Airbags need room to inflate.
Sit back, comfortably extending your arms to
reach the steering wheel or instrument panel.
²If the vehicle has side airbags, they also need
room to inflate. Do not lean against the door. Sit
upright in the center of the seat.
The front airbag system consists of the following:
²Occupant Restraint Controller
²Side Remote Acceleration Sensors (If equipped)
²Airbag Warning Light
²Driver Airbag
²Passenger Airbag
²Front Seat Mounted Side Airbags (If equipped)
²Side Curtain Airbags
²Steering Wheel and Column
²Instrument Panel
²Interconnecting Wiring
²Knee Impact Bolsters
²Driver Inflatable Knee Blocker
²Front Acceleration Sensors
²Driver and Front Passenger Seat Belt Pretensioners
²Occupant Classification System (OCS) for the Front
Passenger Seat
þOccupant Classification Module
þPassenger Airbag Disable (PAD) Indicator Light
þWeight Sensors
42 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

How The Airbag System Works
²
TheOccupant Restraint Controller (ORC)determines
if a frontal collision is severe enough to require the
airbags to inflate. The front airbag inflators are de-
signed to provide different rates of airbag inflation
from direction provided by the ORC. The ORC may
also modify the rate of inflation based on the occupant
size provided by the Occupant Classification Module.
The ORC will not detect roll over.
The ORC also monitors the readiness of the electronic
parts of the system whenever the ignition switch is in
the START or RUN positions. These include all of the
items listed above except the steering wheel and
column, and knee bolsters. If the key is in the OFF
position, in the ACC position, or not in the ignition,
the airbags are not on and will not inflate.
During a moderate-to-severe rear impact the ORC
may deploy the seat belt pretensioners alone.
Also, the ORC turns on the AIRBAG warn-
ing light and PAD indicator light in the
instrument panel for 6 to 8 seconds for a
self-check when the ignition is first turnedon. After the self-check, the AIRBAG warning light
will turn off. The PAD indicator light will function
normally (Refer to9Passenger Airbag Disable (PAD)
Indicator Light9in this section). If the ORC detects a
malfunction in any part of the system, it turns on the
AIRBAG warning light either momentarily or continu-
ously. A single chime will sound if the light comes on
again after initial start up.
WARNING!
Ignoring the AIRBAG light in your instrument panel
could mean you won't have the airbags to protect
you in a collision. If the light does not come on, stays
on after you start the vehicle, or if it comes on as you
drive, have the airbag system checked right away.
²TheOccupant Classification System (OCS)is part of
a Federally regulated safety system required for this
vehicle. It is designed to turn off the front passenger
airbag for occupants that weigh less than a very small
adult.
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 43
2

NOTE:Children 12 years and under should always ride
buckled up in a rear seat in an appropriate child restraint.
²The OCS classifies an occupant using weight sensors
mounted in the base of the front passenger seat. Any
weight on the seat will be sensed by the system.
Objects hanging on the seat or other passengers push-
ing down on the seat will also be sensed. The weight of
an adult will cause the system to turn the airbag on. In
this case, the OCS has classified the occupant of the
seat as an adult. An adult occupant needs to sit in a
normal position (with their feet on or near the floor) in
order to be properly classified. Reclining the seat back
too far may change how an occupant is classified by
the OCS.
²ThePassenger Airbag Disabled (PAD) Indicator
Light(an amber light located in the center of the
instrument panel) tells the driver and front passenger
when the front passenger airbag is turned off. The
PAD Indicator lamp illuminates the words9PASS AIR
BAG OFF9to show that the front passenger airbag will
not inflate during a collision requiring airbags. When
the right front passenger seat is empty or when verylight objects are placed on the seat, the passenger air
bag will not inflate even though the Passenger Airbag
Disable (PAD) indicator lamp is not illuminated.
The PAD indictor light should not be illuminated
when an adult passenger is properly seated in the
front passenger seat. In this case, the air bag is ready to
be inflated if a collision requiring an airbag occurs.
For all other occupants, the PAD indicator light will be
illuminated indicating that the front passenger airbag
is turned off and will not inflate.Passenger Airbag Disabled Light
44 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

NOTE:Even though this vehicle is equipped with an
occupant classification system, children 12 years and under
should always ride buckled up in a rear seat in an
appropriate child restraint (see section on child restraints).
WARNING!
Never place a rear facing infant seat in front of an
airbag. A deploying passenger airbag can cause death
or serious injury to a child in a rear facing infant seat.
Front Passenger Seat
OccupantPassenger Airbag
Disable (PAD)
Indicator LightAirbag
Status
Adult OFF ON
Child ON OFF
Grocery Bags, Heavy
Briefcases and Other
Relatively Light ObjectsON OFF
Empty or Very Small
ObjectsOFF* OFF
* Since the system senses weight, some small objects
will turn the PAD Indicator Light on.Drivers and adult passengers should verify that the PAD
Indicator Light is not illuminated when an adult is riding
in the front passenger seat. If an adult occupant's weight
is transferred to another part of the vehicle (like the door
or instrument panel), the weight sensors in the seat may
not properly classify the occupant. Objects lodged under
the seat or between the seat and the center console can
prevent the occupant's weight from being measured
properly and may result in the occupant being improp-
erly classified. Ensure that the front passenger seat back
does not touch anything placed on the second row of
seats because this can also affect occupant classification.
Also, if you fold down the seats in the second row check
to be sure they don't touch the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger seat is damaged in any way, it
should only be serviced by an authorized dealer. If the
seat is removed (or even if the seat attachment bolts are
loosened or tightened in any way), take the vehicle to an
authorized dealer.
If there is a fault present in the OCS, the Airbag Warning
Light (a red light located in the center of the instrument
cluster directly in front of the driver) will be turned on.
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 45
2

This indicates that you should take the vehicle to an
authorized dealer. The Airbag Warning Light is turned on
whenever there is fault that can affect the operation of the
airbag system. If there is a fault present in the OCS, both
the PAD Indicator Light and the Airbag Warning Light
are illuminated to show that the passenger airbag is
turned off until the fault is cleared. If an object is lodged
under the seat and interferes with operation of the weight
sensors, a fault will occur which turns on both the PAD
Indicator Light and the Airbag Warning Light. Once the
lodged object is removed, the fault will be automatically
cleared after a short period of time.
²TheDriver and Passenger Airbag/Inflator Unitsare
located in the center of the steering wheel and the right
side of the instrument panel. When the ORC detects a
collision requiring the airbags, it signals the inflator
units. A large quantity of nontoxic gas is generated to
inflate the front airbags. Different airbag inflation rates
may be possible based on collision severity and occu-
pant size. The steering wheel hub trim cover and the
upper right side of the instrument panel separate and
fold out of the way as the bags inflate to their full size.
The bags fully inflate in about 50 - 70 milliseconds.This is about half of the time it takes to blink your eyes.
The bags then quickly deflate while helping to restrain
the driver and front passenger. The driver's front
airbag gas is vented through vent holes in the sides of
the airbag. The passenger's front airbag gas is vented
through vent holes in the sides of the airbag. In this
way the airbags do not interfere with your control of
the vehicle.
²TheOccupant Classification Module (OCM)is lo-
cated beneath the front passenger seat. The OCM
classifies the occupant into categories based on the
measurements made by the seat weight sensors. The
OCM communicates with the Occupant Restraint Con-
troller (ORC). The ORC uses the occupant category to
determine whether the front passenger airbag should
be turned off. It also determines the rate of airbag
inflation during a collision.
²Your vehicle has fourWeight Sensorslocated between
the seat and the floor pan. The weight sensors measure
applied weight and transfers that information to the
OCM.
46 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

²TheSide Impact (SRS) Side Curtain Airbags (If
equipped)are designed to activate only in certain side
collisions.
The ORC module determines if a side collision is
severe enough to require the side airbags to inflate.
The side airbag control module will not detect roll
over, front or rear collisions.
The ORC Module monitors the readiness of the elec-
tronic parts of the system whenever the ignition switch
is in the START or ON positions. These include all of
the items previously mentioned.
In moderate to severe side collisions, the side airbag
inflator on the crash side of the vehicle is triggered,
releasing a quantity of nontoxic gas. The side curtain
airbag moves at a very high speed and with such a
high force, that it could injure you if you are not seated
properly, or if items are positioned in the area where
the side curtain airbag inflates. This especially applies
to children.
NOTE:If your vehicle is equipped with left and right
side curtain air bags, do not install a clothing barmounted to the coat hooks (or similarly mounted). A
clothing bar will impede the proper performance of the
bags.
²When the ORC and the impact sensors detect a
collision requiring theDriver Inflatable Knee Blocker
, it signals the inflator unit. A quantity of nontoxic gas
is generated to inflate the Driver Inflatable Knee
Blocker. The Driver Inflatable Knee Blocker inflates
rearward towards the driver's knees to help protect
the knees and position you for the best interaction
with the front airbag. The Driver Inflatable Knee
Blocker fully inflates in about 50 milliseconds, this is
only about half of the time it takes you to blink your
eyes. It then quickly deflates while helping to protect
the driver's knees.
²TheKnee Impact Bolstershelp protect the knees, and
position everyone for the best interaction with the
front airbag.
The front passenger seat assembly contains critical com-
ponents that affect the front passenger airbag deploy-
ment. Correctly functioning front passenger seat compo-
nents are critical for the Occupant Classification System
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 47
2

(OCS) to properly classify the front passenger and calcu-
late the proper airbag deployment. Do not make any
modifications to the front passenger seat components,
assembly, or to the seat cover.
The following requirements must be strictly adhered to:
²Do not modify the front passenger seat assembly or
components in any way.
²Do not modify the front seat center console or center
position seat in any way.
²Do not use prior or future model year seat covers not
designated for the specific model being repaired. Al-
ways use the correct seat cover specified for the
vehicle.
²Do not replace the seat cover with an aftermarket seat
cover.
²Do not add a secondary seat cover other than those
approved by DaimlerChrysler/Mopar.
²At no time should any supplemental restraint system
(SRS) component or SRS related component or fas-
tener be modified or replaced with any part except
those which are approved by DaimlerChrysler/
Mopar.
WARNING!
Unapproved modifications or service procedures to
the front passenger seat assembly, its related compo-
nents, or seat cover may inadvertently change the
airbag deployment in case of a frontal crash. This
could result in death or serious injury to the front
seat passenger if the vehicle is involved in an acci-
dent. A modified vehicle may not comply with
required Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
(FMVSS).
If A Deployment Occurs
The airbag systems are designed to deploy when the
airbag control modules detect a moderate-to-severe col-
lision, to help restrain the driver and front passenger, and
then immediately deflate.
48 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE