
22
—Adjusting front seats
13A001
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
Avoid reclining the seatback any
more than needed. The seat belts pro-
vide maximum 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 re-
straint forces directly to the abdomen
or your neck may contact the shoul-
der belt. In the event of a frontal
collision, the more the seat is re-
clined, the greater the risk of death
or personal injury.
Fold down rear seat
13A040
BEFORE FOLDING DOWN REAR SEAT
Make sure the shoulder belt passes
through the hanger when folding the
rear seat.
This prevents the shoulder belt from being
damaged.
CAUTION
The seat belt must be removed from
the hanger when the seat belt is in
use.

26
13A005
Ta bBuckle
Adjust the seat as needed and sit up
straight and well back in the seat. To
fasten your belt, pull it out of the re-
tractor and insert the tab into the
buckle.
You will hear a click when the tab locks
into the buckle.
The seat belt length automatically adjusts
to your size and the seat position.
The retractor will lock the belt during a
sudden stop or on impact. It also may
lock if you lean forward too quickly. A
slow, easy motion will allow the belt to
extend, and you can move around freely. 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 49.) 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 death or serious
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.
—Fastening front and rear
seat belts

28
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.
13A100
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.
13A045a
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 buckled in the wrong place.
Buckle 1—Matches the light gray tab
Buckle 2—Matches the interior color
tab

32
13A126
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. When the seat belt pretensioners are acti-
vated, an operating noise may be heard
and a small amount of non
−toxic gas may
be released. This does not indicate that
a fire is occurring. This gas is normally
harmless.
Once the seat belt pretensioners have
been activated, the seat belt retractors
remain locked.
CAUTION
Do not modify, remove, strike or open
the seat belt pretensioner assemblies,
airbag sensor or surrounding area or
wiring. Failure to follow these instruc-
tions may prevent the seat belt pre-
tensioners from activating correctly,
cause sudden operation of the system
or disable the system, which could
result in death or serious injury. Con-
sult your Scion dealer about any re-
pair and modification.
NOTICE
Do not perform any of the following
changes without consulting your
Scion dealer. Such changes can
interfere with proper operation of the
seat belt pretensioners in some
cases.
Installation of electronic devices
such as a mobile two way radio,
cassette tape player or compact
disc player
Repairs on or near the front seat
belt retractor assemblies
Modification of the suspension sys-
tem
Modification of the front end struc-
ture
Attachment of a grille guard (bull
bar, kangaroo bar, etc.), snowplow,
winches or any other equipment to
the front end
Repairs made on or near the front
fenders, front end structure or con-
sole

33
13A138
This indicator comes on when the igni-
tion key is turned to the “ON” position.
It goes off after about 6 seconds. This
means the seat belt pretensioners are
operating 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, passenger ’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 buzzers” on page 83.)If any of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction of the airbags
or seat belt pretensioners. Contact your
Scion dealer as soon as possible.
When the ignition key is turned to the
“ON” position, the light does not come
on or remains on for more than about
6 seconds or flashes.
The light comes on or starts flashing
while driving.
If any seat belt does not retract or
cannot be pulled out due to a malfunc-
tion or activation of the relevant seat
belt pretensioner.
The seat belt pretensioner assembly or
surrounding area has been damaged.
13A013
In the following cases, contact your Scion
dealer as soon as possible:
The front of the vehicle (shaded in the
illustration) was involved in an accident
that was not severe enough to cause
the seat belt pretensioners to operate.
Either seat belt pretensioner assembly
or surrounding area is scratched,
cracked, or otherwise damaged.

36
Hitting a curb,
edge of pavement
or hard surfaceFalling into or
jumping over a
deep hole
Landing hard or vehicle falling
The SRS front airbags may also deploy
if a serious impact occurs to the under-
side of your vehicle. Some examples
are shown in the illustration.
13A128
The SRS front airbag system consists
mainly of the following components, and
their locations are shown in the illustra-
tion. 1. Front airbag sensors
2. SRS warning light
3. Airbag module for front passenger (airbag and inflator)
4. Driver ’s seat belt buckle switch
5. Passenger ’s seat belt buckle switch
6. Driver ’s seat position sensor
7. Airbag sensor assembly
8. Airbag module for driver (airbag and inflator) The airbag sensor assembly consists of a
safing sensor and airbag sensor.
The front airbag sensors constantly moni-
tor the forward deceleration of the vehicle.
If an impact results in a forward decelera-
tion beyond the designed threshold level,
the system triggers the airbag inflators. At
this time a chemical reaction in the inflat-
ors very quickly fills the airbags with non
−
toxic gas to help restrain the forward mo-
tion of the occupants. The front airbags
then quickly deflate so that there is no
obstruction of the driver ’s vision should it
be necessary to continue driving.
When the airbags inflate, they produce a
loud noise and release some smoke and
residue along with non −toxic gas. This
does not indicate a fire. This smoke may
remain inside the vehicle for some time,
and may cause some minor irritation to
the eyes, skin or breathing. Be sure to
wash off any residue as soon as possible
to prevent any potential skin irritation with
soap and water. If you can safely exit
from the vehicle, you should do so imme-
diately.

40
13A138
This indicator comes on when the igni-
tion key is turned to the “ON” 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, passenger ’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 buzzers” on page 83.)If any of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction of the airbags
or seat belt pretensioners. Contact your
Scion dealer as soon as possible.
When the ignition key is turned to the
“ON” position, the light does not come
on or remains on for more than about
6 seconds or flashes.
The light comes on or starts flashing
while driving.
13A130
In the following cases, contact your Scion
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.

43
Collision from the rear
Collision from the front Vehicle rollover
The SRS side airbag and curtain shield
airbags are not generally designed to
inflate if the vehicle is involved in a
front or rear collision, if it rolls over,
or if it is involved in a low speed side
collision.
13A131
The SRS side airbag and curtain shield
airbag system consists mainly of the fol-
lowing components, and their locations are
shown in the illustration.1. SRS warning light
2. Curtain shield airbag modules (airbag and inflator)
3. Side airbag modules (airbag and inflator)
4. Curtain shield airbag sensors
5. Side and curtain shield airbag sensors
6. Airbag sensor assembly The SRS side airbag and curtain shield
airbag system is controlled by the airbag
sensor assembly. The airbag sensor as-
sembly consist of a safing sensor and
airbag sensor.
In a severe side impact, the side and
curtain shield airbag sensor and/or the
curtain shield airbag sensor trigger(s) the
side airbag inflators and/or the curtain
shield airbag inflators. At this time a
chemical reaction in the inflators quickly
fills the airbags with non
−toxic gas to help
restrain the lateral motion of the occu-
pants.
When the airbags inflate, they produce a
fairly loud noise and release some smoke
and residue along with non −toxic gas. This
does not indicate a fire. This smoke may
remain inside the vehicle for some time,
and may cause some minor irritation to
the eyes, skin or breathing. Be sure to
wash off any residue as soon as possible
to prevent any potential skin irritation with
soap and water. If you can safely exit
from the vehicle, you should do so imme-
diately.