2007 HONDA ELEMENT child seat

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This section gives you important
inf ormation about how to protect
yourself and your passengers. It
shows you how to use seat belts. It
explains how your airbags work. And
it tells you how to properly restrain
inf ants and children in your vehicle.
.........
Important Safety Precautions .8
.......
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features .9
.....................................
Seat Belts .10
.........................................
Airbags .11
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Protecting Adults and Teens .12
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1. Close and Lock the Doors .12
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2. Adjust the Front Seats .13
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3. Adjust the Seat-Backs .14
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4. Adjust the Head Restraints .15
5. Fasten and Position the
............................
Seat Belts .15
6. Maintain a Proper Sitting ................................
Position .17
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Advice f or Pregnant Women .18
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Additional Safety Precautions .18
Additional Inf ormation About Your .................................
Seat Belts .20
..
Seat Belt System Components .20 ......................
Lap/Shoulder Belt .21
Automatic Seat Belt
...............................
Tensioners .22
...............
Seat Belt Maintenance .22
Additional Inf ormation About Your .....................................
Airbags .24
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Airbag System Components .24
How Your Front Airbags
.........................................
Work .27
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How Your Side Airbags Work .31
How Your Side Curtain Airbags
.........................................
Work .32
How the SRS Indicator .......................................
Works .33
How the Side Airbag Of f ......................
Indicator Works .34
How the Passenger Airbag Of f ......................
Indicator Works .34
.............................
Airbag Service .35
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Additional Safety Precautions .36
Protecting Children General ................................
Guidelines .37
All Children Must Be ...............................
Restrained .37
All Children Should Sit in a .................................
Back Seat .38 The Passenger’s Front Airbag
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Can Pose Serious Risks .38
If You Must Drive with Several ...................................
Children .40
If a Child Requires Close ..................................
Attention .40
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Additional Safety Precautions .41
Protecting Inf ants and .........................
Small Children .42
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Protecting Inf ants .42
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Protecting Small Children .43
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Selecting a Child Seat .44
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Installing a Child Seat .45
...............................
With LATCH .46
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With a Lap/Shoulder Belt .48
..............................
With a Tether .50
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Protecting Larger Children .51
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Checking Seat Belt Fit .51
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Using a Booster Seat .52
When Can a Larger Child Sit in
.........................................
Front .52
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Additional Safety Precautions .53
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Carbon Monoxide Hazard .54
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Saf ety Labels .55
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
7

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You’ll
find many safety
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 typ es 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 ).
Having a tire blowout or a
mech anical failure can be extremely
hazardous. To reduce the possibility
of such problems, check your tire
pressures and condition frequently,
and perform all regularly scheduled
maintenance (see page ).
Excessive
speed is a maj or factor 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
faster than is safe for current
conditions, regardless of the
maximum speed posted.
Al cohol 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 friends
drink and drive, either.
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.
Infants, young children, and short
adults are at the greatest risk. Be
su re to follow all instru ctions and
warnings in this manual.
Children
age 12 and under should
ride properly restrained in a back
seat, not the front seat. Infants and
smallchildrenshouldberestrained
in a child seat. Larger children
should use a booster seat and a lap/
shoulder belt until they can use the
belt properly without a booster seat
(see pages ).
15 37 53
179
Important Saf ety Precautions
Always Wear Your Seat Belt K eep Your Vehicle in Saf e
Condition Control Your Speed
Don’t Drink and Drive Be Aware of Airbag Hazards Restrain All Children
8

Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in all seating positions.
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. 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 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
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
passengers always wear seat
belts and wear them properly.

µAfter
everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors are closed
and locked.
They are designed to supplement
the seat belts.
To do
their job, airbags must inflate with
trem endous force. 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.
The
most important things you need
to know about your airbags are:
Always wear
your seat belt properly, and sit
upright and as far back from the
steering wheel as possible while
allowing full control of the vehicl e. A
front passenger should move their
seat as far back from the dashboard
as possible. Locking
the doors reduces the
ch ance of someone being thro wn out
of the vehicle during a crash, and it
helps prevent passengers from
accidentally opening a door and
falling out.
Lo cking the doors also helps prevent
an outsider from unexp ectedly
opening a door when you come to a
stop.
The
rest of this section gives more
detailed information about how you
can maximize your safety.
Remember however, that no safety
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.
The following pages pro vide
instru ctions 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 front.
See pages for important
guidelines on how to properly
protect infants, small children, and
larger children who ride in your
vehicle. Your
vehicle has a door and
tailgate monitor indicator
on the instrument panel to indicate
when a specific door or the tailgate
or the hatch is not tightly closed.
See page for how to lock the
doors, and page for how the door
and tailgate monitor indicator works.
5337
63
80
Close and L ock the Doors
Protecting A dults and T eens
Introduction 1.
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.A irbags can pose hazards.
What you should do:
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features, Protecting A dults and Teens
12

If you are pregnant, the best way to
protect yourself and your unborn
child when driving or riding in a
vehicle is to always wear a seat belt,
and keep the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across the hips.When driving, remember to sit
upright and adjust the seat as f ar
back as possible while allowing f ull
control of the vehicle. When riding
as a f ront passenger, adjust the seat
as far back as possible.
This will reduce the risk of injuries
to both you and your unborn child
that can be caused by a crash or an
inflating front airbag.
Each time you have a checkup, ask
your doctor if it’s okay f or you to
drive.
If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a
crash.
A passenger who is not
wearing a seat belt during a crash
or emergency stop can be thrown
against the inside of the vehicle,
against other occupants, or out of
the vehicle.
If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a
crash.
Protecting A dults and Teens
Advice f or Pregnant Women Additional Saf ety Precautions
Never let passengers ride in t he
cargo area or on t op of a f olded-down back seat .
Passengers should not stand up orchange seats while the vehicle ismoving.
T wo people should never use t hesame seat belt .
18

This system uses the same sensors
as the front airbags to monitor
whether the front seat belts are
latched or unlatch ed, and how much
weight is on the front passenger’s
seat (see pages and ).
The seat belt system
includes an indicator on the
instrument panel and a beeper to
remind you and your passengers to
f asten your seat belts.
This system monitors the f ront seat
belts. If you turn the ignition switch
to the ON (II) position bef ore your
seat belt is f astened, the beeper will
sound and the indicator will f lash. If
your seat belt is not f astened bef ore the beeper stops, the indicator will
stop f lashing but remain on.
If a f ront passenger does not f asten
their seat belt, the indicator will
come on about 6 seconds af ter the
ignition switch is turned to the ON
(II) position.
When no one is sitting in the f ront
passenger’s seat, or a child or small
adult is riding there, the indicator
should not come on and the beeper
should not sound.
If the indicator comes on or the
beeper sounds when the driver’s seat
belt is latched and there is no f ront
seat passenger and no items on the
front seat, something may be
interf ering with the monitoring
system. Look f or and remove:
Any items under the f ront
passenger’s seat.
Any objects hanging on the seat or
in the seat-back pocket.
Any objects, such as a f olded-down
back seat, that is touching the rear
of the seat-back.
If no obstructions are f ound, have
your vehicle checked by a dealer.
Your seat belt system includes lap/
shoulder belts in all f our seating
positions. The f ront seat belts are
also equipped with automatic seat
belt tensioners.
If either the driver or a f ront
passenger does not f asten their seat
belt, the beeper will sound and the
indicator will f lash again at regular
intervals.
29 30
Seat Belt System Components
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
20

The lap/shoulder belt goes over
your shoulder, across your chest,
and across your hips.
To fasten the belt, insert the latch
plate into the buckl e, then tug on the
belt to make sure the buckle is
latched (see page for how to
properly position the belt). To
unlock the belt, press the red
PRESSbuttononthebuckle.Guide
the belt across your body so that it
retracts completely. After exiting the
vehicle, be sure the belt is out of the
way and will not get closed in the
door.
All seat belts have an emerge ncy
locking retractor. In normal driving,
the retractor lets you move freely in
your seat while it keeps some
tension on the belt. During a collision
or sudden stop, the retractor
automati cally locks the belt to help
restrain your body. The
seat belts in all positions except
the driver’s have an additional
lockable retractor that must be
activated to secure a child seat (see
page ).
If the shoulder part of the belt is
pulled all the way out, the lockable
retractor will activate. The belt will
retract, but it will not allow the
passenger to move f reely.
To deactivate the lockable retractor,
unlatch the buckle and let the seat
belt fully retract. To refasten the
seat belt, pull it out only as f ar as
needed.
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48
L ap/Shoulder Belt
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
21

Automatic front seat belt
tensioners (see page ).
Sensors that can detect a
moderate to severe front impact or
side impact.
Sensors that can detect whether a
child is in the passenger’s side
airbag path and signal the control
unit to turn the airb ag off (see
page ). An
indicator on the dashboard that
alerts you that the passenger’s
front airbag has been turned off
(see page ).
Emergency backup power in case
your vehicle’s electrical system is
disconnected in a crash.
An
indicator on the instrument
panel that alerts you that the
passenger’s side airbag has been
turned off (see page ).
Sensors that can detect whether
the driver’s seat belt and a front
passenger’s seat belt is latched or
unlatch ed (see page ).
A driver’s seat position sensor that
monitors the distance of the seat
from the front airbag. If the seat is
too far forward, the airbag will
inflate with less force (see page
). Weight
sensors that monitor the
weight on the front passenger’s
seat. If the weight is about 65 lbs
(29 kg) or less (the weight of an
infant or sm all child), the
passenger’s front airbag will be
turned off (see page ).
A sophisticated electronic system
that continually monitors and
reco rds information about the
sensors, the control unit, the
airbag activators, the seat belt
tensioners, and driver and front
passenger seat belt use when the
ignition switch is in the ON (II)
position.
An indicator on the instrument
panel that alerts you to a possible
problem with your airbags,
sensors, or seat belt tensioners
(see page ).
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29 29
33 34
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
26