2006 HONDA INSIGHT Owners Manual

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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.
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 passenger
always wear your seat belts, and
wear them properly (see page ).
Since all children are saf est in the
back seat of a vehicle, and your
vehicle does not have a back seat, we
recommend that you do not carry a
child passenger. If an older child must ride in this
vehicle, f ollow all child saf ety
instructions and warnings in this
manual (see pages ).
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.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 ).
14 25 37
127
Important Saf ety Precautions
Always Wear Your Seat Belt
Your Vehicle is Not
Recommended f or Child
PassengersBe Aware of Airbag Hazards
Don’t Drink and DriveControl Your Speed
K eep Your Vehicle in Saf e
Condition
Due to the passenger’s airbag hazard,
you should never carry an inf ant in arear-f acing child seat in t his vehicle.
8

Your vehicle is equipped with many
features that work together to
protect you and your passenger
during a crash.
Some f eatures do not require any
action on your part. These include a
strong aluminum f ramework that
forms a safety cage around the
passenger compartment; f ront and
rear crush zones; a collapsible
steering column; and tensioners that
tighten the seat belts in a crash.
However, you and your passenger
can’t take full advantage of these
f eatures unless you remain sitting in
a proper position and. In fact, some safety
f eatures can contribute to injuries if
they are not used properly.
The f ollowing pages explain how you
cantakeanactiveroleinprotecting
yourself and your passenger.
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
always wear
your seat belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
9
(1)
(2) (2)
(3)
(4)
(5) (6)
(7)
(8) (9)
(1) Safety Cage
(2) Crush Zones
(3) Seats and Seat-Backs
(4) Head Restraints
(5) Collapsible Steering Column
(6) Seat Belts
(7) Seat Belt Tensioners
(8) Airbags
(9) Door Locks

Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in both seating positions.
Your seat belt system also includes
an indicator on the instrument panel
to remind you and your passenger to
f asten your seat belts.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.
Seat belts have proven to be the
singlemosteffectivesafetydevice
f or adults and larger children.
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. Help keep you f rom being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against the other occupant.
Always wear
your seat belt, and make sure you
wear it properly.
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Seat Belts
Why Wear Seat Belt s
What you should do:
10
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
Be sure you and your
passenger always wear seat
belts and wear them 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 passenger
during a moderate to severe frontal
collision (see page f or more
information on how your airbags
work).The most important things you need
to know about your airbags are:
They are designed to supplement
the seat belts.
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. 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
passenger should move the seat as
f ar back f rom the dashboard as
possible.
The rest of this section gives more
detailed inf ormation about how you
can maximize your saf ety.
Remember, however, that no saf ety
system can prevent all injuries or
deaths that can occur in a severe
crash, even when seat belts are
properly worn and the airbags deploy.
21
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Airbags
Airbags do not replace seat belts.
Front airbags of f er no protectionin side impact s, rear impact s,rollovers, or minor collisions.
Airbags can pose serious hazards. What you should do:Driver and Passenger Saf ety
11

µIf you sit too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard, you can be
seriously injured by an inf lating
airbag, or by striking the steering
wheel or dashboard.
The f ollowing pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver, an adult
passenger or teenage child large
enough and mature enough to drive
or ride in your vehicle. See pages
f or important guidelines on
how to properly protect a small or
larger child.
Adjust the driver’s seat as far to the
rear as possible while allowing you to
maintain f ull control of the vehicle.
Have a passenger adjust his or her
seat as far to the rear as possible.
After everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors are closed
and locked. Locking the doors reduces the
chance of someone being thrown out
of the vehicle during a crash, and it
helps prevent a passenger f rom
accidentally opening a door and
f alling out.
Locking the doors also helps prevent
an outsider f rom unexpectedly
opening a door when you come to a
stop.
See page f or how to lock the
doors, and page f or how the
monitor indicator works.
Your vehicle has a door
monitor indicator on the
instrument panel to indicate when
either door or the hatch is not tightly
closed. 25 37
6246
Protecting A dults and Teens
Adjust the Seats
Introduction
Close and L ock the Doors
1. 2.
12

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.
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.
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.
Once your seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it back and f orth to make sure
the seat is locked in position.
See page f or how to adjust the
seats.
A passenger should also adjust the
seat-back to a comf ortable, upright
position.
66
CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
Adjust the Seat-Backs
3.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
13
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.

Position the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across your hips,
then pull up on the shoulder part of
the belt so the lap part f its snugly.
This lets your strong pelvic bones
take the force of a crash and reduces
the chance of internal injuries.
Insert the latch plate into the buckle,
then tug on the belt to make sure the
belt is securely latched. Check that
the belt is not twisted, because a
twisted belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash.
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.
66
Protecting A dults and Teens
Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
4.
14
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.

Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward or sideways,
or puts one or both f eet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is
greatly increased. After occupants have adjusted their
seats and put on seat belts, it is very
important that they continue to sit
upright, well back in their seats, with
their feet on the floor, until the
vehicle is parked and the engine is
off.
If a seat belt does not seem to work
properly, it may not protect the
occupant in a crash.
Using a seat
belt that is not working properly can
result in serious injury or death.
Have your dealer check the belt as
soon as possible.
See page f or additional
inf ormation about your seat belts
and how to take care of them.
If necessary, pull up on the belt again
to remove any slack, then check that
the belt rests across the center of
your chest and over your shoulder.
This spreads the f orces of a crash
over the strongest bones in your
upper body.
This could cause
very serious injuries in a crash. 18
CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
Maintain a Proper Sitting
Position
5.
No one should sit in a seat wit h an
inoperat ive seat belt .
Never place t he shoulder port ion of a lap/shoulder belt under your arm orbehind your back.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
15
Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned before
driving.