2007 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA airbag off

@ Booklet 2.1 Safety first
• there is a c han ge in the we ight mea sur ed by
th e we ig h t- se n sing mat in th e fro nt pas se nge r
s ea t th at d ete rmin es wheth er th e Adva nced
Ai rbag o n the pass eng er s id e ca n dep lo y or w ill
be t urn ed off.
Aft er th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF lig ht stop s
b lin kin g, a lwa ys mak e sure that t he airbag
s tat us ( on or off) as show n by the PASS ENG ER
A lR B AG OFF lig ht is prop er fo r th e size, age , a nd
we ig h t of the occupant o n the fron t pa ssenger
s ea t.Alwa ys mak e s ure that th e
b elt f or th e
fr ont pa sseng er sea t is p roperl y fa ste n ed whe n·
ev er th e pa sse nge r seat i s occ upi ed.
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ligh t w ill sh ow
th e c orre ct sta tu s of th e fron t Ad vance d Air b ag
on th e pa sse nger sid e a few sec onds after t he
niti on h as be en sw itc h ed on and:
• will sta y o n if t he fron t pa ssen ger sea t is no t
o ccupi ed,
• will sta y on if a child up t o ab out one yea r o f
ag e is o n th e front passe nger seat in one of th e
r e a r- fa cin g or fo rw ard -facin g in fant r estra int s
list ed in F edera l M oto r Ve hicl e Safety S ta nd ard
2 08 w it h whic h t he A dva nce d Airbag Syste m i n
y our vehicle was ce rtified, is reg is te re d b y th e
w eig ht- sensing m at in th e sea t. Fo r a listin g of
th e c hild res traint s th at we re use d t o ce rtify your
ve hicl e's co mplianc e w ith th e US Safe ty
d a rd 5 3,
• will go ou t if the fro nt passe nge r se at is
pi ed b y an adult as reg is te re d b y th e se nsi ng m at.
Th e PASSENGE R AIR BAG O FF lig ht must come
o n and stay o n if the ig nit io n i s o n a nd
• a car b ed has bee n in stall ed on th e fro nt sea t.
o r
• a rear wa rd-faci ng c hild res tra int has bee n
sta lled on th e fro nt p asse nger seat, or
• a forwa rd-fa cing c hild r estraint h as been
sta ll ed on th e fron t p asse nge r sea t, or
• th e we ig ht r egis tered o n the front passe nge r
s eat is equ al to o r less than th e co mb in ed weig ht
o f a ty pi ca l I ye ar- old res tra in ed in one o f th e
rea r-fac in g o r fo nva rd-faci ng in fa nt re s tra int s
li ste d in F ed era l Moto r Ve hicle Saf ety St andard
208
w hic h th e Adva nce d Ai rb ag Sys te m in
yo ur vehicl e w as ce rtifi ed .
I f th e front passe nge r sea t is not occ upied , th e
fr ont a ir b ag w ill not de ploy, and t he PASS ENG ER
OF F light will sta y o n. Nev er a
40 Airbag system
re ar ward-facing chil d res traint on the front se nger seat, the sa fest pla ce for a chil d in an y
k ind of c hild r estra in t is at on e of t he sea ting
sit ion s on t he rea r se at 29, " Chil d strai nts on th e front seat-so me import ant
th ings to kn ow " a nd 51, "C hild safe ty ."
If th e PASSENGE R
AIR BAG OFF light come s on
w hen one of t he co ndit io ns liste d ab ove is m et,
b e s ure
c h eck the li gh t r eg ula rl y to m ake tai n th at th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht
s tays o n co ntinu ously w hen eve r th e ig nit io n is
o n. I f th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light does
n ot app ear and no t stay o n all th e time, sto p as
soo n as it is safe to d o so a nd
• re ac tiva te th e sys te m b y turn in g th e ig n iti on
off and th en t urni ng it on a gain ;
• re m ove a nd re in stall t he child res traint. Mak e
s ur e that th e c hild r estra int is prop erly in sta lled
and th at th e saf ety be lt for t he front p asse nge r
sea t has bee n co rrec tly rout ed aro und th e child
r es traint a s desc ribed in th e ch ild r estra int
in struc tio ns;
• make sur e th at th e co nve rtib le lock in g
tu re o n th e safe ty belt fo r the front p asse nge r
sea t has bee n ac tivated a nd th at th e sa fety belt
h as bee n pulled ti gh t. The be lt mu st n ot b e loose
or have loops of s lack so th at t he se nsor below
t h e
be lt la tc h on th e se a t ca n do its jo b 60.
• make su re th at th in gs that m ay inc rease th e
we ig ht of the c hild and chi ld sea t a re not bein g
t ra nspo rted on th e fro nt passe nge r sea t;
• make s ure th at th e
belt tens io n se nsor
i s not blocke d. S hake th e sa fe ty be lt la tc h on th e
fro nt passe nger sea t bac k and forth;
• make s ure th at n oth in g ca n i nte rfe re w ith t he
safe ty be lt bu ck les and th at th ey a re not
stru cte d.
• If a stra p or te th er i s bein g used to tie th e
c h ild sea t to th e fro nt passe nge r seat, make sur e
that it i s
110 1 so tig ht that it ca uses the sensin g ma t to meas ure m ore we igh t th an is t u ally on th e se at.
If the PA SSE NGER AIR
light still doc s
n ot co me o n and docs not s tay on co nti nuo usly
(w hen th e ig nit ion i s sw itch ed on),
• take th e ch ild res tra in t o ff t he fro nt passe nge r
sea t a nd in sta ll i t prope rly
at on e of t he rea r sea t
pos itions. Ha ve the airbag sys tem in spec ted by
Vo lkswage n deale r

• mo ve th e c hild to a re ar sca t po siti on and
m ake sur e that th e ch ild is p ro perl y res train ed in
a child res traint that is appropriat e for it s size
and age.
T he PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght sh ould NOT
co me on when th e ignition i s on and an adult is
s ittin g in a prop er se ating p osition on th e front
pa sse nger sea t. If th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
l ight com es on and stays on und er th ese circum­
s tan ces, make sur e that :
• the adult on th e fron t pa sse nger seat i s prop­
e rl y se ate d on th e ce nter of the se at cu shion with
his or her ba ck up again st th e ba ckr es t and the
ba ckr es t is not r eclin ed
4 , " Prop er occu ­
p ant sea ting posit ion s."
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
• the a dult i s not takin g we ig ht off the se at b y
hold ing on to the pa sse nger a ssist h andl e above
th e fro nt passe nger door or supportin g their
wei ght on th e armre st or ho ld in g on to th e ass is t
handl e on the instrum ent p anel,
• th e safety belt is bei ng prop erl y
an d
tha t th ere is no t lot of sla ck in th e safet y belt
we bbin g,
• access ory seat cove rs o r cu shi ons or oth er
thin gs th at may cause an inco rre ct reading o r
impr ession on th e we ight -sensing m at under
th e up ho ls tery of the seat have be en rem ove d
fr om the front p asse nger sea t,
• the optio nal
b elt ex te nd er h as not
b een le ft in th e b elt lat ch for th e fron t pa s­
se ng er sea t.
Important safety instructions on monitoring the Advanced Airbag
System
WARNING
A n airbag syste m that is not functioning prop­
er ly cannot provide supplementa l protection
in a frontal crash.
• If the
indi cator light comes on, it
mean s that there may be s omething wron g
with the Adva nced Airbag Sy stem. It is pos­
sib le th at the airbag will inflate when it is not
suppo sed to, or will not inflate when it sh ou ld.
• Hav e the airb ag system inspected immedi­
at ely by you r Vo lkswage n dealer.
WARNING
If th e front airbag inflates, a child without a
child restraint, in a rearwa rd-facing child scat
or in a forward-faci ng child restraint that has
not been properly insta lled
b e s eriousl y
injured and can be killed.
• Eve n though your vehicle is equipped with
a n Advanced Airbag System, make certain
that all childr en , e specially 12 year s and
yo ung er, always rid e on the back scat properly
restrained for their age and size.
• Alwa ys install forward or rear-facing child
seat s on the
sea t-eve n with an Advanced
Airbag System.
• If yo u must in stall a rcanvard- faci ng c hild
sea t on the front passenger scat because or ex-
WARNING (co ntinued )
ceptional circumstance s and the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light doe s not come on and stay
immedi ately install the rea r-facing chi ld
seat In a rear seating pos ition and have the
airba g syste m inspected by your Volkswagen
d ea ler.
• A tight tether or other strap on a
facing child r estraint attached to the front pas­
se nger sea t can pu t too mu ch pr essure on th e
weight-sens ing mat in the seat and register
more
weight than is actua lly on the sea t. The
h ea vier w eight registered can the
sys te m work as though an adult were on the
sea t and deploy th e A dvanced A irbag w hen
it mu st be suppre ssed caus ing seriou s or even
fat al injury to the c hild .
WARNING
An in sta ll ed c hild restraint can in­
t e rfe re with the airb ag as it deploy s and ser i­
ously injure or eve n kill the ch ild -even with
an Adva nced Airbag Sys tem. If, in excep tional
cir cumstan ces, you must install a fonvard­
facing chil d re straint on the front passenger 's
seat:
• child seats inst alled on the
front p assenger's seat m ay int erfere with the
Airbag system 41

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
WARNING (continu ed)
depl oyment of the ai rba g and ca use se rious
per sonal injury to the child.
• Alway s mak e sur e th e fo rward-facin g seat
h as been des ign ed an d ce rtified b y its
fac turer for use on a front seat with a se nge r front and sid e airb ag.
• Alway s ca ref ull y follow the manufa cturer' s
in stru ctio ns pro vided with the c hild seat or
c arrier.
• Neve r put the
child s trai nt u p aga inst or very near th e in strum ent
panel.
• Al ways move the passe nge r seat into its
armost pos itio n in the seat's fore and aft ju stm ent range , a s fa r away from the a irbag as
po ssibl e befo re in sta llin g th e fonvard-faci ng
c hild res traint. The backre st mu st b e adjust ed
to a n up rig ht p osition.
• Alway s m ake sur e th at nothin g preve nts
th e front passenge r's s eat from bei ng moved
to the re armost positi on in it s fore and aft
justm ent r ange.
• Neve r place additional it em s on the sca t
th at ca n in crease the total weight reg is te re d b y
th e we ig ht -se nsi ng m at and can ca use inju ry
in a cras h.
• Mak e sure th at th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
O FF li ght comes on and stay s on a ll th e time
w hene ver th e ig nition i s switch ed on.
WARN ING (cont inued)
• If th e PASSENGE R BAG OFF light does
not come on and sta y on , imm ediatel y in sta ll
the forward -facing child seat in a rear seating
po siti on and h ave the airbag system insp ec ted
b y yo ur Vo lkswagen dealer.
WARNING
• If the PASSE NGER BAG ligh t do cs
not go ofTwhen an adult i s sitting on the front
pas senger scat after taking the ste p s d esc ribed
above, make s ure the adu lt is prop erl y sea ted
a nd restrain ed at one of th e rear seating
ti ons.
• I lave the airbag syste m inspected by you r
Vo lkswage n dea ler befor e tran sportin g
a n yo ne on the front passen ger sea t.
T ips
• If th e we ig ht-s ensin g m at in th e f ront
seng er se at detec ts a n empt y sea t, th e front
airb ag on th e passe nge r sid e w ill be turn ed off .
a nd th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF lig ht will sta y
on.
• If th e opti onal safe ty belt ex te nd er i s le ft in
t h e bu ckle fo r th e
sa fe ty belt , o r th e fron t
pa ssen ger saf ety belt itse lf is bu ck led an d t he
fron t p asse nge r s eat is not occ u pie d , th e
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light will come
Repair , care and d isposa l of the a irbags
Part s of t he ai rbag sys te m are in sta lled at m an y
d iffe re nt plac es on yo u r V olksw age n. In sta lli ng.
re mo vin g, se rv ic in g or rep air in g a part in an a re a
of th e ve hicl e c an dam age a part of an airb ag
sys te m and pr eve nt that syste m fr om wo rk in g
prop erl y in
co llision .
Th ere ar e so me imp ort ant thin gs yo u have to
kn ow to m ake s ure th at t he eff ec tive ness o f th e
sys te m will not b e impa ire d and t hat d isca rded
c om pon en ts do not c ause injur y or pollu te th e
e n vir onm en t.
WARNING
I mp roper care , se rv ic in g and repair dure s can incr ease ri sk of personal in jur y
42 Airbag sys tem
WA RNING ( conti nue d)
a nd d eath by preve ntin g airba g from ploy ing w hen needed or d eplo yin g an airb ag
un ex pec te dl y:
• Nev er c over, obstru ct, or c han ge the
s te erin g w heel horn pad or airb ag cover or the
in strument panel o r modif y th em in any wa y.
• Neve r att ac h an y obj ects su ch as cup
h old ers or tele phone mountin gs to th e
fac es c overin g th e a irbag units.
• For clean ing th e horn pad or in strum ent
panel, use on ly a so ft, dr y cloth or one moi st·
ened w ith pla in water. Solven ts or cl ea ner s
co uld dam age the a irbag cov er or ch ange the

The airbag system is monitored electronically 10 make cenain i t is functio ning properly all
t ime s. Each time you turn o n th e ig ni tion,
airbag system indica to r lig ht w ill co me on for a
few seco nds (self diagnost ics).
T he side airbag syste m sup pleme nts rhe safety
be lts and can help to reduce the risk of inj ur y
the dr iv er's a nd front passe nger's upper torso on sid e of th e vehicle that is stru ck in a sid e co l­
li sion. The airbag inflate s on ly in sid e impa cts
and onl y when the veh icle acce leration reg is­
t e red b y the control unit is high en ough. If
rate is below reference value programm ed
i n to co ntr ol u ni t, t he side airbag s not be
trigg ere d , eve n though the ca r ma y be badly
damag ed as a r esult of the co llision. It is
pos ­
s ible d efin e an airbag trigger ing rang e th at
w ill cover eve ry possible ang le of impact, sin ce
t h e ci rc u ms ta n ces will vary co nsiderably be­
twee n one collision and anot her. lrnpona nl fac­
include, for example, the na tu re (har d or
s oft ) of th e impacting objec t, a ngle of im­
pact, vehicle speed, etc. 46, "Impo rta nt
s afet y in structio ns for the side a irbag system ".
As ide from th eir normal safety function, saf ety
belts
to h elp k eep the dri ver or front pas­
senger in posit io n in a side colli sio n so th e
s id e airb ags can prov ide prot ection whe n
inflate. Safe ty belt s also help to keep rear seat
pas seng ers in po sition so that optional rear seat
s id e airbag s can prov ide protection in a sid e co l­
li sio n i n w hic h th e side air b ag inflates.
T he a irbag syste m is not a subst itute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of t he overa ll occu­
pant re straint syste m in your vehicle. A lways re­
memb er
the airbag syste m can only help to
pro tec t yo u if you are wearing your safe ty b elt
and wearing
properly. This is an other rea son
why you sho uld alwa ys wear your safe ty belt s,
n o t ju st b ecau se th e
re quir es you do so 13 , bel ts" .
It is im portant 10 re mem be r that wh ile th e su p­
p lemen tal side airbag system is designed to help
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
reduce the likelih ood of seriou s injuri es, other
injuries, for example, swelling, bruising, and
mi nor abra sions can a lso be associated w it h
th ese airbags. Remember t oo , side airbags w ill
dep loy o nly once an d on ly in certai n kinds of ac­
ciden ts - your safety belt s are always th ere to
offer protec tion.
Ve hicle dam age, repa ir cost s or even
lack of
ve hicle da mag e is no t necessa rily a n indicatio n
of prope r airbag operation. In some collis ions,
both front and side airbag s may inflate. Re­
mem ber too, tha t airbag s w ill dep loy only once
a n d only in certain kind s of collis io ns - your
safety belt s ar e always there to offer protection in
t h ose acciden ts in whic h ai rb ags a re not sup­
po sed to deploy or whe n
have al ready de­
p loye d.
Th e side airbag sy stem
will not b e trigg ere d
• if th e igni tion is sw itc hed off,
• in side collisions when
accelerat ion mea­
s ured by th e sensor is too low ,
• in front-en d co llisio ns,
• in rear -end collisions,
• in rollove rs.
In some types of accidents
Sid e Cur­
tain Pro tection and sid e airbag s may be tr ig­
gered together.
WARNING
• Safety belt s a nd lh e a irb ag sys te m will onl y
p rov ide prot ectio n when occ upant s a re in the
co rrec t se atin g po sition
13, "Safety
b elt s" .
• If the air b ag in dicator light comes o n when
the vehicl e is bein g use d, h ave the sys te m in­
spec te d imm edi ate ly by yo ur Vol kswage n
d eal er. Th e side a irb ag sys te m m ay not wor k
prop erl y eve n wh en th e vehicle acce le ratio n
in a side colli sion i s high en ough
10 ac tiva te
th e a irbag
Airbag system 45

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
Side Curtain Protection
provide supplemental protection to properly restrained oc­
cupants.
Fi g. 28 Th e Side Curtain Pro tec tio n™ a irba gs loca ted above the w indows on bo th s ides .
The S ide Curt ain airbags are in th e
header area on both side s of the veh icle 28 .
Th e general loca tion is iden tified by the word
The Side Curtain Protec tion airbag system
a irba g sys te m suppl eme nts the safe ty belts and
ca n help to r educe the risk of injury for occu­
pant s' heads and upper tor so on the sid e of the
ve hicl e th at is s tru ck in a side collisio n . The Side
C urtain
airbag inflates only in sid e
impa cts and only when the veh icle acce le ration
regi stere d by the control unit i s high enough. If
thi s rate is below the refe rence value pro ­
grammed into th e co ntrol unit, the side airba gs
w ill not be tri gge re d , eve n though the car may be
badly damag ed as a resu lt of th e co llision. It is
not pos sib le to define an airbag triggering range
that will cover eve ry po ssible ang le of impact ,
s inc e th e circum stanc es will vary co nsidera bly
be tween o ne co llisio n and another. Important
fa ctors include , for example, the nat ure {hard or
so ft) o f the impactin g
the ang le of im­
pa ct, vehicle speed, etc. 49, "How Sid e
Curtain Protectio n airbags work" .
As ide fr om the ir nor mal sa fe ty function , safety
b elt s wo rk to he lp keep the dr iver or front pas -
48 Airbag syste m
senge r in po sit io n in the event of a co llision so
that t he S ide Curta in Protectio n™ a irbags ca n
provid e prot ection .
Th e airbag syste m is not a subs titut e for your
safe ty belt. Hath er, it is part of the overall occu­
pant r estraint system in you r ve hicle. Always re­
memb er that the airbag system can only help to
protect you if you are wearing your safety belt
and wearing it prop erl y. This is another reaso n
you sh ould alwa ys wear your safety belt s,
n o t ju st becau se the law r equir es you to do so
13, "Safety belts".
Veh icle damage, repair costs or eve n the lack of
vehicle damage is not necessa rily an indi cation
of prop er airbag operation. lt is imp orta nt to re­
m emb er that while the Side Curtain Protec-
ti on
airbag system is de sig ned to help reduce
the like lihood of se rious injuries, oth er injuri es,
for examp le, swe lling, bruis ing, and minor abra­
s ions can als o be assoc iated w it h th ese a irbags.
too, these airba gs w ill deploy onl y
once and on ly in certain kinds of collisions
yo ur safet y belt s are a lways there to offer prote c­
ti on in thos e accide nts in whi ch airbags are not
s upp osed
depl oy or when they hav e al rea dy
d eployed .

The Side Curtain Prot ection ™ airbag syste m ba­
sica lly con sis ts of:
•
e lec tron ic co ntro l modu le and sid e impa ct se nso rs,
•
Sid e Curtain airbag s ab ove front and r ear sid e window s,
• the airbag indica to r
in in strum ent
panel.
Th e airbag
is m oniwred electroni cally to
mak e ce rtain ii is functioni ng prop erl y all
tim es. Eac h you turn on the ig niti on, airbag syste m indica tor will come on for a
fe w seconds (self diagno sti cs).
Th e Side Curtain Protection™ airbag syste m is
not acti vated:
• if the igniti on is turn ed off,
• in sid e colli sion s when the ac ce lera tion
s ur ed by se nsor is 100 low,
Applies to vehicles: with side curtain protection airbags
Booklet 2 .1 Safety first
• in fron t-end collisio ns,
• in rea r-e nd collisio ns,
• in ro llove rs .
In some types o f acc ident s th e front, Sid e
tai n and side airba gs may be tri g­
ge re d to gether.
WARNING
• Safety bell s an d the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in the
proper seating pos ition
4.
• If th e a irbag indicator ligh t comes w hen
th e vehicle is being used, have the system
spec te d immediately by your Volkswagen
deal er. The Sid e C urtain
m ay not work proper ly eve n when the vehicle
acce lera tion in side co llision i s hi gh en oug h
t o act iva te the airbag.
How Side Curtain Protection™ airbags wor k
S id e Curtain
airbags can work together with side airb ags to help re­
d uce the risk of head and upp er to rso injuri es fo r occupants who ar e properly
st rain ed.
F ig . 29 Inflate d Side Curtai n airbags
on the lef t side
T he S ide Curtain airbags occupa nt and sid e windo w on side of ve hicle is in s id e collis io n s 29 . W
hen th e
is tri gger ed , th e S ide Curt ain
Prot ection
and break s through hea der above the and re ar wind ows and center doo r pi llar
and d eplo ys dow nwa rds. In ord er to help
vid e addit io nal prot ection, side airbag infl ate the blink of an eye at very
hi gh sp ee d and g rea t fo rce . The S ide Protec tion airbag could injure you if yo ur
seat ing po sit ion is 1101 prop er or up righ t or if
are in area where the suppl e­sid e a irba g infl ates. This app lies es pe­
cia lly lO children 5 1, "C hild saf ety". thou gh are not a so ft pillow, Sid e C urtain "cu shion" the impa ct and in
thi s th ey can help t o re du ce ris k of injur y the head and upp er part of bod y.
A fine du st
d eve lo p when airbag ploys . Thi s is quit e normal and doe s not mean is a fi re in ve hicl e.
Airbag system 49

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
WARNING (continued)
sma sh th e c hild scat and child against th e
backr est, ce nter arm r est, door or roof.
• If y ou mu st in sta ll a rearward facin g ch ild
sca t on the front pas senger seat in exce ptional
circum stan ces and the "PAS SENGER
BAG li ght d ocs not come on and stay on, im­
m ed iately install the rear-faci ng ch ild sca t in a
r ear sea ting po siti on and have the airbag
sys tem inspe cted immedia tely by your Volk­
swagen dea le r.
WARNING
If , in exce ptiona l circumstances , you must in­
s tall a forward-facing child r estraint on the
fr on t pa sse nger's seat:
• Always make s ure th e forward-facing seat
h as be en de signed and certifi ed by it s m anu ­
factur er for use on a front seat w ith a pa s­
se nge r front and side airb ag.
WARN ING (con tinued)
• Always fo llow the m anufacturer 's in stru c­
tions provid ed wi th the c hild seal or carri er.
• Alw ays move the pa sse nger seat into its re­
armost p osition in the seat's fore and aft ad­
ju stm ent range, a s far away from
airbag as
po ssibl e befo re in stallin g the child re str aint.
The ba ckrest mu st be adju sted lo an upright
po sition.
• /\lwa ys make su re th at nothing pre vents
th e fro nt passenger' s sea t from being mo ved
to the re armo st p osition in it s fore and aft ad­
ju stme nt ran ge.
• Always make sure that the PASSENGER AIR
B A G OFF li ght come s on and sta ys o n all th e
tim e when eve r the ignition is switch ed on.
• If th e PASSENGE R
BAG light does
nol come o n and sta y o n, immediat ely install
th e fo rward-fac ing child seat in a rear seating
po sition and h ave the air ba g sys te m in spec te d
by your Volkswage n deale r.
-4
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicl e is equ ipped with dual-stage fron t
" A dvan ced Airbag Sy ste m " in comp lian ce w ith
U nited Sta tes Fed eral Motor Vehicl e Safety Stan ­
dard (FMV SS) 2 08 as app licable at th e tim e yo ur
ve hicl e
manuf actur ed.
Th e Advan ced Airbag syste m in your vehicle has
b e en certifi ed t o mee t the "low risk " re qui re­
for 3 and 6 year -o ld childr en on the pa s­
s e ng er sid e and small adults on the dr ive r sid e.
Th e lo w r is k dep loym ent crit eria arc int ended
to redu ce th e risk of inju ry through wi th the air ba g th at ca n occ ur, for examp le , b y
being too clo se lO the s tee ring wheel and ment pane l wh en th e a irbag inflat es. In addi ­
ti o n, th e sys te m ha s bee n ce rtifi ed t o co mply
52 Child safety
with the " suppr essio n" re qui re ments of the
Saf ety Standa rd. to turn off th e fro nt air bag for
in fants up to 12 month s who are re strai ned on
th e f ront pa ssenger se at in child rest ra int s th at
ar e liste d in th e S ta ndard.
Eve n thou gh yo ur vehicl e is e quipped w ith an
A dv an ced Airb ag sys te m, all chil dren, e sp eci ally
t h ose
12 year s and younger, sho uld a lway s ride
i n th e ba ck se at prop erly re strained for their ag e
a n d siz e . T he airbag on th e pa sse nger side
makes t he front sca t
po te ntiall y dangerou s
pla ce for a child to rid e. Th e front seat is not the
s af es t pla c e f or a child in a forward -fac ing child
se at. It ca n be a ve ry dang erou s place for a n in­
fa nt or a larger child in a r earward-facing seat.
-4

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
Advanced Airbags and the weight -sensing mat in the front seat
The A dva nced Airba g Sys te m in yo ur vehicl e de­
t e cts the presence of an infant or ch ild in a child
r estrai nt on th e fron t passe nger sea t usin g th e
weig ht-sensin g mat in the sea t cushi on and the
se nso r below the safe ty belt lat ch on the front
p assenger seat th at m eas ures the te nsion on th e
belt.
The weigh t-se nsi ng m at m eas ures
we ig ht
o f th e c hild and the child seat and a child bla nk et
on the front pa sse nge r sea t. The weight on th e
front passe nger seat is re la ted to th e de sig n of
the child restrai nt and its "foo tprint ", the s ize
an d sh ap e of the b ou om of the c hild res traint a s
it sits on the se at. The we ig ht of
ch ild res traint
an d it s "foot print " vary for differe nt kind s of
child re straint s and for th e diffe re nt m odels of
t h e sam e kin d o f child r estraint offere d b y child
re straint manufa ctu rers.
Th e weig ht ranges for the indi vidual ty p es,
makes and m odels of c hild res trai nts th at th e
N HT SA has sp ecified in th e Safe ty Standa rd to· ge
ther w ith th e weight ra nges of typi ca l in fants
and ty pic al I ye ar-old child have bee n sto re d in
t h e co ntrol un it o f the Advanced Airb ag Sys te m.
Whe n a c hild res traint is bei ng use d on th e fro nt
passe nge r sea t w ith a ty p ica l
1 ye ar- old child , th e
A dvanc ed Ai rbag System compares the weight
mea sur ed b y th e we ig h t-se nsi ng ma t w ith the
informa tion stored in the elec tro nic con trol unit.
T he elec troni c control u nit al so reg is te rs th e ten ­
s ion on th e front passeng er sa fe ty be lt. T he te n ­
s ion on th e sa fety belt for the front pa ssenger
sea t
be different for ad ult is prop erl y
u sin g th e s afety belt as compar ed to the te n sio n
o n th e be lt
it is use d to att ach a child r e­
s traint to th e seat. Th e senso r be low the la tc h fo r
th e safe ty belt for t he front seat passe nger mea­
s ur es the tensio n on th e be lt. The input from thi s
se nso r is th en use d wit h the weig ht t o "d ec ide ",
w hethe r th ere is a chil d res tra int with a typica l
1 year-old ch ild on the front passe nger seat and
w he th er or not th e airb ag mu st b e turn ed
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Hegar dlcss of the ch il d re stra in t that you use,
mak e sur e th at it has been ce rtifi ed me et
United States Fe dera l Motor Vehicl e Saf ety S tan ­
dard s and has been ce rtified by its m anufa ctu re r
for use w ith a n airb ag. /\!ways be sur e that the
c hild r estrai nt i s pro perly
at o ne of t he
r ear sea ting pos itio ns. I f in exce ptional circu m­
s ta nces you m ust u se it o n the fro nt pa ssenge r
sea t, car efull y read all of th e in for matio n on
c hild safety and Adva nced Airbags and hee d all
of th e a pplicabl e
IN GS . Mak e ce rtain that
t h e c hild res traint is cor rec tly reco gnized by th e
we ig ht- sensin g mat in side the front passe nge r
sea t, th at th e front p assenge r air b ag is turn ed off
and th at the a irb ag stat us is always correc tly s ig­
n aled by th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light.
Many ty p es an d m odels of ch ild res 1rai111 s have
b ee n avai lab le ov er th e years ,
models are
introdu ced r egularl y in cor poratin g new and im ­
proved des ign s and old er m odels are take n out
of produ cti on. Chil d res train ts are no t sta ndard­
i zed. C hild restra ints o f the sam e ty p e typi ca ll y h
ave diff ere nt weight s and sizes and differ en t
'foot prin ts ,' t he s ize and sh ape of th e bott om of
th e c hild res train t th at s its on the seat, whe n
th ey are installed on a vehi cle seat. Th ese differ­
e nces mak e it virt uall y impos sib le to cert ify
co mplian ce with th e re quireme nts fo r adva nce d
a ir bag s wit h ea ch and every child res traint that
h as eve r bee n so ld in the pa st or will be sold ove r
th e co urse of the use ful life of yo ur vehicle.
For thi s reaso n, th e Uni te d Sta tes N ati ona l
Hi gh way Tra ffic Sa fe ty A dmini strat io n has pub­
li sh ed
li st of sp ecifi c type, makes and mode ls
of child restr ai nt s that must b e use d t o ce rti fy
co mpliance of the Advan ced Air bag Syste m in
y our vehicl e w it h th e s uppre ssio n r equir em en ts
of Fe d era l Moto r Ve hicle Safety S tandard 208.
Th ese c hild restra ints are:
A. Car beds, manufactur ed an or after De·
cember 1, 1999:
• Cos co Dre am Rid e 02-7 19
Child safety 53