&Emergency Locking Retrac-
tor (ELR)
The driver ’s seatbelt has an Emergency
Locking Retractor (ELR).
The emergency locking retractor allows
normal body movement but the retractor
locks automatically during a sudden stop,
impact or if you pull the belt very quickly
out of the retractor. & Automatic/Emergency Lock-
ing Retractor (A/ELR)
Each passenger ’s seatbelt has an Auto-
matic/Emergency Locking Retractor (A/
ELR). The Automatic/Emergency Locking
Retractor normally functions as an Emer-
gency Locking Retractor (ELR). The A/
ELR has an additional locking mode“ Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR)
mode ”intended to secure a child restraint
system. When the seatbelt is once drawn
out completely and is then retracted even
slightly, the retractor locks the seatbelt in
that position and the seatbelt cannot be
extended. As the belt is rewinding, clicks
will be heard which indicate the retractor
functions as an ALR. When the seatbelt is
retracted fully, the ALR mode is released.
When securing a child restraint system on
the rear seats by the use of the seatbelt,
the seatbelt must be changed over to the Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) mode.
When the child restraint system is re-
moved, make sure that the seatbelt
retracts fully and the retractor returned to
the Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR) mode.
For instructions on how to convert the
retractor to the ALR mode and restore it to
the ELR mode, see the
“Child restraint
systems ”section in this chapter.
& Seatbelt warning light
and chime
Your vehicle is equipped with a seatbelt
warning device at the driver ’s seat, as
required by current safety standards.
There is a seatbelt warning light in the
combination meter.
If the driver has not yet fastened the
seatbelt when the ignition switch is turned
to the “ON ”position, the seatbelt warning
light will flash for 6 seconds, to warn that
the seatbelt is unfastened. If the driver ’s
seatbelt is not fastened, a chime will also
sound simultaneously.
If the driver ’s seatbelt is still not fastened 6
seconds later, the warning light will remain
lit for 15 seconds. If the driver ’s seatbelt is
still not fastened even 15 seconds later
(21 seconds after turning ON the ignition
switch), the warning lights will alternate between flashing and steady illumination
at 15-second intervals, and the chime will
sound while the warning light is flashing.
Alternate flashing and steady illumination
of the warning lights and sounding of the
chime will continue until the driver fastens
the seatbelt.
NOTE . If the driver unfastens the seatbelt
after fastening, the seatbelt warning
device operates as follows according
to the vehicle speed.
.At speeds lower than approxi-
mately 9 mph (15 km/h)
The warning light will alternate
between flashing and steady illumi-
nation at 15-second intervals. The
chime will not sound. . At speeds higher than approxi-
mately 9 mph (15 km/h)
The warning light will alternate
between flashing and steady illumi-
nation at 15-second intervals and
the chime will sound while the
warning light is flashing.
. It is possible to cancel the warning
operation that follows the 6-second
warning after turning ON the ignition
switch. When the ignition switch is
turned ON next time, however, the
complete sequence of the warning Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-11
– CONTINUED –
tion switch is turned to the“ON ”position.
The following components are monitored
by the indicator: . Front sub sensor (Right-hand side)
. Front sub sensor (Left-hand side)
. Airbag control module (including im-
pact sensors). Frontal airbag module (Driver ’s side)
. Frontal airbag module (Front passen-
ger ’s side)
. Side airbag sensor (Center pillar right-
hand side). Side airbag sensor (Center pillar left-
hand side). Side airbag module (Driver ’s side)
. Side airbag module (Front passenger ’s
side). Seatbelt pretensioner (Driver ’s side)
. Seatbelt pretensioner (Front passen-
ger ’s side)
. Seatbelt buckle switch (Driver ’s side)
. Seatbelt buckle switch (Front passen-
ger ’s side)
. Driver ’s seat position sensor
. Front passenger ’s seatbelt tension
sensor. Front passenger ’s occupant detection
system weight sensor. Front passenger ’s occupant detection
control module .
Front passenger ’s frontal airbag ON
and OFF indicator. All related wiring
WARNING
If the warning light exhibits any of
the following conditions, there may
be a malfunction in the seatbelt
pretensioners and/or SRS airbag
system. Immediately take your vehi-
cle to your nearest SUBARU dealer
to have the system checked. Unless
checked and properly repaired, the
seatbelt pretensioners and/or SRS
airbag will not operate properly in
the event of a collision, which may
increase the risk of injury. . Flashing or flickering of the warn-
ing light
. No illumination of the warning
light when the ignition switch is
first turned to the “ON ”position
. Continuous illumination of the
warning light
. Illumination of the warning light
while driving &
System servicing
WARNING
. When discarding a seatbelt re-
tractor assembly or scrapping
the entire vehicle damaged by a
collision, consult your SUBARU
dealer.
. Tampering with or disconnecting
the system ’s wiring could result
in accidental activation of the
seatbelt pretensioner and/or
SRS airbag or could make the
system inoperative, which may
result in serious injury. The wir-
ing harnesses of the seatbelt
pretensioner and SRS airbag
systems are covered with yellow
insulation and the connectors of
the system are yellow for easy
identification. Do not use electri-
cal test equipment on any circuit
related to the seatbelt preten-
sioner and SRS airbag systems.
For required servicing of the
seatbelt pretensioner, see your
nearest SUBARU dealer.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-21
– CONTINUED –
1-42Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
. Do not apply any strong impact to the
front passenger ’s seat such as by kicking.
. Do not spill liquid on the front passen-
ger ’s seat. If liquid is spilled, wipe it off
immediately. . Do not remove or disassemble the front
passenger ’s seat.
. Do not install any accessory (such as
an audio amplifier) other than a genuine
SUBARU accessory under the front pas-senger ’s seat.
. Do not place anything (shoes, umbrel-
la, etc.) under the front passenger ’s seat.
. The front passenger ’s seat must not be
used with the head restraint removed. . Do not leave any article including a
child restraint system on the front passen- ger ’s seat or the seatbelt tongue and
buckle engaged when you leave yourvehicle. . Do not place a magnet near the
seatbelt buckle and the seatbelt retractor.. Do not use front seats with their back-
ward-forward position and seatback not
being locked into place securely. If any of
them are not locked securely, adjust them
again. For adjusting procedure, refer tothe “Front seats ”section in this chapter.
. If you use an optional seatbelt exten-
der, remove it after each use. (Refer to the“ Seatbelt extender ”section in this chap- ter.)
If the seatbelt buckle switch and/or front passenger
’s occupant detection system
have failed, the SRS airbag system
warning light will illuminate. Have the
system inspected by your SUBARU deal-
er immediately if the SRS airbag system
warning light comes on.
If your vehicle has sustained impact, this
may affect the proper function of the
Subaru advanced frontal airbag system.
Have your vehicle inspected at your
SUBARU dealer.
NOTE
The front passenger ’s SRS side airbag
and seatbelt pretensioner are not con-
trolled by the Subaru advanced frontal
airbag system. !
Passenger ’s frontal airbag ON and
OFF indicators
ON or: Front passenger ’s frontal airbag
ON indicator
or: Front passenger ’s frontal airbag
OFF indicator
The front passenger ’s frontal airbag ON
and OFF indicators show you the status of
the front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag.
The indicators are located next to the
clock in the center portion of the dash-board.
When the ignition switch is turned to the “ ON ”position, both the ON and OFF
indicators illuminate for 6 seconds during
which time the system is checked. Follow-
ing the system check, both indicators
extinguish for 2 seconds. After that, one
of the indicators illuminates depending on
the status of the front passenger’s SRS
frontal airbag determined by the Subaru
advanced frontal airbag system monitor-ing.
If the front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag
is activated, the passenger ’s frontal airbag
ON indicator will illuminate while the OFF
indicator will remain extinguished.
If the front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag
is deactivated, the passenger ’s frontal
airbag ON indicator will remain extin-
guished while the OFF indicator willilluminate.
With the ignition switch turned to the “ON ”
position, if both the ON and OFF indica-
tors remain lit or extinguished simulta-
neously even after the system check
period, the system is faulty. Contact your
SUBARU dealer immediately for an in-spection. ! Conditions in which front passen- ger’s SRS frontal airbag is not
activated
The front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag
will not be activated when any of the
following conditions are met regarding the
front passenger ’s seat:
. The seat is empty.
. The seat is equipped with a rearward
facing child restraint system and an infant
is restrained with it. (See WARNING that follows.) .
The seat is equipped with a forward
facing child restraint system and a small
child is restrained with it. (See WARNING
that follows.) . The seat is equipped with a booster
seat and a small child is in the booster
seat. (See WARNING that follows.) . The seat is relieved of the occupant
load for a time exceeding the predeter-
mined monitoring time period. . The seat is occupied by a child who
has outgrown a child restraint system
(See WARNING that follows.) or by a
small adult. . The front passenger ’s occupant detec-
tion system is faulty.
WARNING
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FA-
CING CHILD SEAT IN THE FRONT
PASSENGER ’S SEAT EVEN IF THE
FRONT PASSENGER ’S SRS FRON-
TAL AIRBAG IS DEACTIVATED. Be
sure to install it in the REAR seat in
a correct manner. Also, it is strongly
recommended that any forward fa-
cing child seat or booster seat be
installed in the REAR seat, and that
even children who have outgrown a
child restraint system be also seated in the REAR seat. This is
because children sitting in the frontpassenger
’s seat may be killed or
severely injured should the frontpassenger ’s SRS frontal airbag de-
ploy. REAR seats are the safest
place for children.
When the front passenger ’s seat is occu-
pied by a child, observe the following
precautions. Failure to do so may increase
the load on the front passenger ’s seat,
activating the front passenger ’sSRS
frontal airbag even though that seat is
occupied by a child. . Do not place any article on the seat
other than the child occupant and a child
restraint system. . Do not place more than one child on
the seat.. Do not install any accessory such as a
table or TV onto the seatback.. Do not store a heavy load in the
seatback pocket.. Do not allow the rear seat occupant to
place his/her hands or legs on the front passenger ’s seatback, or allow him/her to
pull the seatback. Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-43
– CONTINUED –
1-44Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
! If the front passenger ’s frontal air-
bag ON indicator illuminates and the
OFF indicator extinguishes even
when an infant or a small child is in
a child restraint system (including
booster seat)
Turntheignitionswitchtothe “OFF ”
position if the front passenger ’s frontal
airbag ON indicator illuminates and the
OFF indicator extinguishes even when an
infant or a small child is in a child restraint
system (including booster seat). Remove
the child restraint system from the seat. By
referring to the child restraint manufac-turer ’s recommendations as well as the
child restraint system installation proce-
dures in the “Child restraint systems ”
section in this chapter, correctly install
the child restraint system. Turn the ignition
switch to the “ON ”position and make sure
that the front passenger ’s frontal airbag
ON indicator goes out and the OFF
indicator comes on.
If still the ON indicator remains illuminated
while the OFF indicator extinguishes, take
the following actions. . Ensure that no article is placed on the
seat other than the child restraint system
and the child occupant. . Ensure that there is no article left in the
seatback pocket. .
Ensure that the backward-forward po-
sition and seatback of front passenger ’s
seat are locked into place securely by
moving the seat back and forth.
If the ON indicator still illuminates while
the OFF indicator extinguishes after taking
relevant corrective actions described
above, relocate the child restraint system
to the rear seat and immediately contact
your SUBARU dealer for an inspection.
NOTE
When a child who has outgrown a child
restraint system or a small adult is
seated in the front passenger ’s seat,
the Subaru advanced frontal airbag
system may or may not activate the
front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag
depending on the occupant ’s seating
posture. If the front passenger ’s SRS
frontal airbag is activated (the ON
indicator illuminates while the OFF
indicator extinguishes), take the follow-
ing actions. . Ensure that no article is placed on
the seat other than the occupant. . Ensure that there is no article left in
the seatback pocket.
If the ON indicator still illuminates while
the OFF indicator extinguishes despite
the fact that the actions noted above have been taken, seat the child/small
adult in the rear seat and immediately
contact your SUBARU dealer for an
inspection. Even if the system has
passed the dealer inspection, it is
recommended that on subsequent trips
the child/small adult always take the
rear seat.
Children who have outgrown a child
restraint system should always wear the
seatbelt irrespective of whether the airbag
is deactivated or activated. !
Conditions in which front passen- ger’s SRS frontal airbag is activated
The front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag
will be activated for deployment upon
impact when any of the following condi-
tions are met regarding the front passen- ger ’s seat.
. When the seat is occupied by an adult.
. When a heavy article is placed on the
seat.
When the front passenger ’s seat is occu-
pied by an adult, observe the following
precautions. Failure to do so may lessen
the load on the front passenger ’s seat,
deactivating the front passenger ’s SRS
frontal airbag despite the fact that the seat
is occupied by an adult. . Do not allow the rear seat occupant to
lift the front passenger’s seat cushion
using his/her feet. . Do not place any article under the front
passenger ’s seat, or squeeze any article
from behind and under the seat. This may
lift the seat cushion. . Do not squeeze any article between
the front passenger ’s seat and side trim/
pillar, door or center console box. This
may lift the seat cushion. ! If the passenger ’s frontal airbag OFF
indicator illuminates and the ON
indicator extinguishes even when
the front passenger ’s seat is occu-
pied by an adult
This can be caused by the adult incor-
rectly sitting in the front passenger ’s seat.
Turntheignitionswitchtothe “OFF ”
position. Ask the front passenger to set
the seatback to the upright position, sit up
straight in the center of the seat cushion,
correctly fasten the seatbelt, position his/
her legs out forward, and adjust the seat to
the rearmost position. Turn the ignition
switch to the “ON ”position. If the OFF
indicator remains illuminated while the ON
indicator remains extinguished, take the
following actions. . Turn the ignition switch to the “OFF ”
position.. Ensure that there are no articles, books, shoes, or other objects trapped
under the seat, at the rear of the seat, or
on the side of the seat. .
Ensure that the backward-forward po-
sition and seatback of front passenger ’s
seat are locked into place securely by
moving the seat back and forth. . Next, turn the ignition switch to the
“ ON ”position and wait 6 seconds to allow
the system to complete self-checking.
Following the system check, both indica-
tors extinguish for 2 seconds. Now, the
ON indicator should illuminate while the
OFF indicator remains extinguished.
If the OFF indicator still illuminates while
the ON indicator remains extinguished,
ask the occupant to move to the rear seat
and immediately contact your SUBARU
dealer for an inspection. ! Effect vehicle modifications made
for persons with disabilities may
have on Subaru advanced frontal
airbag system operation (U.S. only)
Changing or moving any parts of the front
seats, seatbelts, front bumper, front side
frame, instrument panel, combination me-
ter, steering wheel, steering column, tire,
suspension or floor panel can affect the
operation of the Subaru advanced airbag
system. If you have any questions, you
may contact the following Subaru distribu- tors:
Subaru of America, Inc.
Customer Dealer Services Department
P.O. Box 6000
Cherry Hill, NJ 08034-6000
1-800-SUBARU3 (1-800-782-2783)
Schuman Inc, dba Subaru of Hawaii
740 Halekauwila Street Honolulu, HI 96813 808-591-3075
’s Corporation dba Prestige Automo-
bile
491, East Marine Drive, Route 1 Dededo, Guam 671-633-2698
Trebol Motors
P.O. Box 11204, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00910 787-793-2828
There are currently no Subaru distributors
in any other U.S. territories. If you are in
such an area, please contact the Subaru
distributor or dealer from which you Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-45
– CONTINUED –
The SRS airbag can function only when
the ignition switch is in the“ON ”position.
The Subaru advanced frontal airbag sys-
tem is designed to determine the activa-
tion or deactivation condition of the frontpassenger ’s SRS frontal airbag depend-
ing on the total load on the front passen-ger ’s seat monitored by the front passen-
ger ’s occupant detection system weight
sensor. For this reason, only the driver ’s
SRS frontal airbag may deploy in the
event of a collision, but this does not mean
failure of the system.
If the front sub sensors inside both front
fenders and the impact sensors in the
airbag control module detect a predeter-
mined amount of force during a frontal
collision, the control module sends signals
to the airbag module(s) (only driver ’s
module or both driver ’s and front passen-
ger ’s modules) instructing the module(s)
to inflate the SRS frontal airbag(s). Thedriver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS frontal
airbags use dual stage inflators.
The two inflators of each airbag are
triggered either sequentially or simulta-
neously, depending on the severity of
impact, backward-forward adjustment of
the driver ’s seat position and fastening/
unfastening of the seatbelt in the case of
the driver ’s SRS frontal airbag and de-
pending on the severity of impact and the total load on the seat in the case of the
front passenger
’s SRS frontal airbag. After
deployment, the SRS airbag immediately
starts to deflate so that the driver ’s vision
is not obstructed. The time required from
detecting impact to the deflation of the
SRS airbag after deployment is shorter
than the blink of an eye.
Both when only the driver ’s SRS frontal
airbag deploys and the driver ’s and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags deploy,
the driver ’s and front passenger ’s seatbelt
pretensioners operate at the same time.
Although it is highly unlikely that the SRS
airbag would activate in a non-accident
situation, should it occur, the SRS airbag
will deflate quickly, not obscuring vision
and will not interfere with the driver ’s
ability to maintain control of the vehicle.
When the SRS airbag deploys, a sudden,
fairly loud inflation noise will be heard and
some smoke will be released. These
occurrences are a normal result of the
deployment. This smoke does not indicate
a fire in the vehicle.
CAUTION
Do not touch the SRS airbag system
components around the steering
wheel and dashboard with bare hands right after deployment. Doing
so can cause burns because the
components can be very hot as a
result of deployment.
The driver ’s SRS frontal airbag and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag are de-
signed to deploy in the event of an
accident involving a moderate to severe
frontal collision. It is basically not designed
to deploy in lesser frontal impacts be-
cause the necessary protection can be
achieved by the seatbelt alone. Also, they
are basically not designed to deploy in
side or rear impacts or in roll-over acci-
dents because deployment of only thedriver ’s SRS frontal airbag or both driver ’s
and front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags
would not help the occupant in those
situations. The driver ’s and front passen-
ger ’s SRS frontal airbags are designed to
function on a one-time-only basis.
SRS airbag deployment depends on the
level of force experienced in the passen-
ger compartment during a collision. That
level differs from one type of collision to
another, and it may have no bearing on
the visible damage done to the vehicleitself. Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-47
– CONTINUED –
1-52Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
event of the SRS side airbag deploy-
ment, they could be propelled dan-
gerously toward the vehicle ’s occu-
pants and cause injuries.
WARNING
Do not put any kind of cover or
clothes or other objects over either
front seatback and do not attach
labels or stickers to the front seat
surface on or near the SRS side
airbag. They could prevent proper
deployment of the SRS side airbag,
reducing protection available to the
front seat ’s occupant. !
Operation
1) SRS side airbag deploys as soon as a
collision occurs.
2) SRS side airbag protects the front passenger ’s head and chest.
3) After deployment, SRS side airbag starts to deflate immediately. The SRS side airbag can function only
when the ignition switch is in the
“ON ”
position.
The driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS
side airbags deploy independently of each
other since each has its own impact
sensor. Also, the SRS side airbag deploys
independently of the frontal airbags in the
steering wheel and instrument panel.
An impact sensor is incorporated into
each of the vehicle ’s center pillars. If
either sensor detects a certain predeter-
mined amount of force during a side
impact collision, the control module sends
a signal to the side airbag module on the
impacted side of the vehicle, instructing it
to inflate the SRS side airbag. Then the
side airbag module produces gas, which
instantly inflates the SRS side airbag.
After deployment, the SRS side airbag
will deflate in a few seconds.
The SRS side airbag deploys even when
no one occupies the seat on the side on
which an impact is applied.
When the SRS side airbag deploys, a
sudden, fairly loud inflation noise will be
heard and some smoke will be released.
These occurrences are normal result of
the deployment. This smoke does not
indicate a fire in the vehicle.