Transporting children safely136
passenger seat where the child is seated with its back facing in direction of travel (in some countries also when the ch ild is facing the direction of travel). If this is not done, there is a risk of the child suffering severe or even fatal injuries if the front passenger airbag is deployed. In certain countries national legal provisions also requir e that the side or head passenger airbags be deactivated. When transporting a child on the front passenger seat, please comply with the appropri ate national regulations regarding the use of child safety seats.
•If the front passenger airbag has been switched off by a specialist garage using the vehicle system tester, the si de passenger airbag* remains switched on. In certain countries national legal provisions require that besides the front passenger airbag also the side or head passenger airbags are deacti- vated. Please comply with any differin g national legal regulations regarding the use of child safety seats.
•If a child safety seat in which the child faces in the direction of travel is used on the front passenger seat, the front passenger seat must be moved back and to the top fully. Adjust the backrest to the vertical position.
•As soon as you no longer use the chil d safety seat on the front passenger seat, you should again have the front or the side passenger airbag activated.
Child safety and side airbag*
Children must never be seated in the deployment area of the side
airbags and head airbags.
Side airbags* offer the vehicle occupants enhanced protection in the event of a collision from the side.
The side airbags are inflated in fractions of a second in order to be able to provide this protection ⇒page 128, “Function of the side airbags”.
An airbag inflating develops such a strong force that an occupant who has not adopted a correct seated position may suff er injuries. Also exposed objects which are located within the area of th e side airbag can cause injuries.
WARNING (continued)
Fig. 125 Seated position of an unprotected child at risk from side airbag
Fig. 126 Child properly protected by safety seat
NKO A05F 20 MR08.book Page 136 Thursday, April 19, 2007 11:34 AM
Transporting children safely137
Using the systemSafetyDriving TipsGeneral MaintenanceBreakdown assistanceTechnical Data
This applies particularly to children if they are not transported in accordance with legal requirements.
The child is protected when seated in a child safety seat matching its age. Adequate room is available between the child and the deployment area of the side airbag and head airbag. The airbag offers optimal protection.
WARNING
•It is essential to always switch off ⇒page 131 the front passenger airbag when attaching a child safety seat on the front passenger seat where the child is seated with its back facing in direction of travel (in some countries also when the child is facing the direction of travel). If this is not done, there is a risk of the child suffering severe or even fatal injuries if the front passenger airbag is deployed. In certai n countries national legal provisions also require that the side or head pa ssenger airbags be deactivated. When transporting a child on the front passenger seat, please comply with the appropriate national regulations regarding the use of child safety seats.
•When transporting a child on the front passenger seat, please comply with the appropriate national regulations regarding the use of child safety seats.
•Children must never be seated with th eir head in the deployment area of the side airbag - risk of injury!
•Do not place any objects within the deployment area of the side airbag - risk of injury!
Child seat
Classification of ch ild seats into groups
Only child safety seats which have an official approval and are suit-
able for the child, may be used.
ECE-R 44 standard applies to child safety seats. ECE-R means: Economic Commis- sion of Europe - Regulation.
Child safety seats which have been tested for conformity with ECE-R 44 have a non- detachable test seal (a large E within a circle and below this the test number) attached to the seat.
Child safety seats are classified in 5 groups:
Children of more than 150 cm in height may use the seat belts fitted to the vehicle without a seat bolster.
Use of child seats
An overview of the usefulness of child seats on each of the seats according to the EG guidelines 77/541 and ECE 44 standard:
Universal category - seat is suitable for all approved types of child safety seats.
The seat can be fitted with fixing eyes for the “ ISOFIX*”system.
The seat is equipped as standa rd with the fixing system “To p Te t h e r”.
GroupWeight
00 - 10 kg⇒page 138
0+up to 13 kg⇒page 138
19 - 18 kg⇒page 138
215 - 25 kg⇒page 139
322 - 36 kg⇒page 139
Child seat groupsFront passenger seatRear seat outsideRear seat middle
0
0+
1
2 and 3
AUAUA+ATAU
AUAUA+ATAU
AUAUA+ATAU
AUAUAU
AU
A+
AT
NKO A05F 20 MR08.book Page 137 Thursday, April 19, 2007 11:34 AM
