2008 DODGE SPRINTER ESP

37 Safety
Occupant safety
2
Warning
G
A seat belt that is worn incorrectly or not at
all, or that is not correctly engaged in the
seat belt buckle, cannot perform its intended
protective function. In certain circumstanc-
es, you could be seriously or even fatally in-
jured. Make sure, that all occupants – in
particular, expectant mothers – wear their
seat belt correctly at all times.You must make sure that the belt:is routed as low as possible across your
pelvic area, for example across your hip
joints and not across your abdomen
Continued
Warning (Continued)
G
fits closelyis not twistedis routed across the middle of your shoul-
deris not routed across your neck or under
your armis pulled tight across the lap by pulling up-
wards on the shoulder beltDo not secure any objects with a seat belt
if it is being used by one of the vehicle’s
occupants.
Warning (Continued)
G
Avoid wearing bulky clothing, for example
a winter coat.Do not route the belt strap over sharp or
fragile objects, especially if these are lo-
cated in or on your clothing, for example
eyeglasses, pens or keys. The belt strap
could otherwise tear in the event of an ac-
cident and you or other vehicle occupants
could be injured as a result.O n l y o n e p e r s o n m a y u s e e a c h s e a t b e l t a t
any one time.
Continued
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47 Safety
Occupant safety
2
Warning (Continued)
G
\4Vehicle occupants should wear their
seat belt correctly at all times and
lean back against the backrest, which
should be positioned as upright as
possible. The head restraints should
support the back of the head at about
eye level.\4Move the passenger’s seat as far to
the rear as possible, especially if a
child is secured in a restraint system
installed on this seat.
Continued
Warning (Continued)
G
\4On vehicles with a passenger’s air-
bag, it is not permitted to secure a
rearward-facing child restraint sys-
tem to the passenger’s seat
(\2page 56). Children in a rearward-
facing child restraint system must be
secured on a suitable rear seat.\4Do not lean forward, for example over
the padded boss of the steering
wheel, especially when the vehicle is
in motion.
Continued
Warning (Continued)
G
\4Only hold the steering wheel by the
outer rim. This allows the airbag to in-
flate fully. If you hold the inside of the
steering wheel, you could be injured if
the airbag were to be triggered.\4Do not put your feet on the dash-
board.\4Do not lean on the doors from inside
the vehicle.\4Make sure that no persons, animals
or objects are present between the
vehicle occupants and the deploy-
ment range of the airbags.
Continued
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49 Safety
Occupant safety
2
When the vehicle occupant makes con-
tact with the airbag, hot gas flows out of
the inflated airbag. This reduces the load
on the head and upper body of the vehi-
cle occupant. The airbag is therefore in a
deflated state after an accident.
Warning
G
After an airbag has been triggered:
\4airbag parts are hot – do not touch
them, otherwise you could be burnt
\4the airbags must be replaced at a
qualified specialist workshop which
has the necessary specialist knowl-
edge and tools to carry out the work
required. The manufacturer recom-
mends that you use an authorized
Sprinter Dealer for this purpose.
In particular, work relevant to safety
or on safety-related systems must be
carried out at a qualified specialist
workshop.
Warning
G
A small amount of fine powder is released as
an airbag inflates. This powder does not con-
stitute a health hazard, nor does it imply that
fire has broken out in the vehicle. This pow-
der could cause short-term breathing difficul-
ties for persons suffering from asthma or
other respiratory conditions. To avoid these
breathing difficulties, you should either:\4leave the vehicle immediately, if it is
possible to do so safely
or
\4open the window to allow fresh air to
enter
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69 Safety
Driving safety systems
2
\3 Driving safety systemsIn this section, you will find information
about the following driving safety sys-
tems: \4
ABS (A
ntilock B
rake S
ystem)
\4
BAS (B
rake As
sist)
\4
ESP
® (E
lectronic S
tability P
rogram)
\4
ASR (acceleration skid control)
\4
EBV (electronic brake force distribu-
tion)
iThe maximum effect of ABS, BAS,
ESP
®, ASR and EBV can only be
achieved if you:
\4
always drive with the correct tire
pressures adjusted according to
the load (
\2
page 361)
\4
use winter tires (M+S tires) in
wintry conditions, with snow
chains if necessary
Warning
G
There is an increased risk of an accident if
you:\4
drive too fast, in particular when corner-
ing and on a wet or slippery road surface
\4drive too close to the vehicle in front
The driving safety systems described in
this section cannot reduce this risk and
are unable to override the laws of physics.
Always adapt your driving style to the pre-
vailing road and weather conditions, and
maintain an adequately safe distance
from other road users as well as any ob-
stacles on the road.
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70 SafetyDriving safety systems
2
ABS regulates the brake pressure in
such a way that the wheels do not lock
when you brake. This allows you to con-
tinue steering when braking.
ABS works from a speed of about 3 mph
(5 km/h) upwards, regardless of road
surface conditions.
ABS works on slippery surfaces, even
when you only brake gently.There is a malfunction if the
-
indica-
tor lamp is permanently lit while the en-
gine is running (
\2
page 466).
Despite this, the normal driving and
braking functions remain available.
iOnly use wheels with the recom-
mended tire sizes (
\2
page 623), oth-
erwise the driving safety systems will
not work correctly.
Antilock Brake System (ABS)
Warning
G
Do not depress the brake pedal several
times in quick succession (pumping). De-
press the brake firmly and evenly. Pump-
ing the brake pedal may reduce the
braking effect.
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72 SafetyDriving safety systems
2
Vehicles without steering wheel but-
tons:
There is a malfunction if the
k
indi-
cator lamp is permanently lit while the
engine is running (
\2
page 73).ESP
® monitors driving stability and de-
tects a tendency of the vehicle to under-
steer or oversteer (skidding) in good
time. ESP
® stabilizes the vehicle by
braking individual wheels, limiting the
engine power output, and greatly assists
y o u w h e n d r i v i n g o n w e t o r s l i p p e r y r o a d
surfaces. ESP
® also stabilizes the vehi-
cle when braking.
When ESP
® intervenes, the
v
warn-
ing lamp in the speedometer flashes.
Warning
G
If BAS malfunctions, the brake system is
still available with the full brake boosting
effect. In an emergency braking situation,
however, the braking force will not be ad-
ditionally boosted automatically and the
stopping distance may increase.
Electronic Stability Program
(ESP
®)
Warning
G
Proceed as follows if the v warning
lamp in the speedometer flashes:
\4Do not deactivate ASR under any cir-
cumstances.
\4Only depress the accelerator pedal as
far as necessary when pulling away.
\4Adapt your driving style to suit the
prevailing road and weather condi-
tions.
Otherwise, the vehicle could begin to
skid.
ESP
® cannot reduce the risk of an acci-
dent if you drive too fast. ESP
® is unable
to override the laws of physics.
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73 Safety
Driving safety systems
2
There is a malfunction if the
#
indica-
tor lamp is permanently lit while the en-
gine is running (
\2
page 468).
If ESP
® malfunctions, engine power out-
put may be reduced.ASR improves traction for a sustained
period, i.e. the transfer of power from
the tires to the road surface, and thus
also improves the driving stability of the
vehicle. ASR assists you when pulling
away and accelerating, especially on
smooth and slippery surfaces.
ASR brakes individual drive wheels and
limits the engine torque to prevent the
drive wheels from spinning. When ASR
intervenes, the
v
indicator lamp in
the speedometer flashes.
!
CAUTION
Only operate the vehicle briefly (max-
imum of 10 seconds) on a brake dy-
namometer. The key must be turned
to position
1 in the ignition lock dur-
ing this time. You could damage the
drive train or the brake system.
!
CAUTION
Do not operate the vehicle on a roller
dynamometer (for example for per-
formance testing). If you wish to op-
erate the vehicle on a roller
dynamometer, please consult an au-
thorized Sprinter Dealer beforehand.
You could otherwise damage the
drive train or the brake system.
Acceleration skid control (ASR)
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74 SafetyDriving safety systems
2
If the road surface is not capable of pro-
viding sufficient traction, bearing in
mind the tires, load and gradient, it is
not be possible to pull away smoothly
even with ASR.
Vehicles without steering wheel but-
tons:
There is a malfunction if the
k
indi-
cator lamp is permanently lit while the
engine is running (
\2
page 73).
If ASR malfunctions, engine power out-
put may be reduced.
Activating/deactivating ASRASR is automatically activated as soon
as the engine is switched on.
It may be best to deactivate ASR in the
following situations:\4
if snow chains are being used
\4
in deep snow
\4
on sand or gravelIf you deactivate ASR:
\4
the engine’s torque is then no longer
limited and the drive wheels could
spin; the spinning wheels produce a
cutting effect for better traction
\4
traction control still intervenes by
braking if one drive wheel reaches its
grip limit, for example if the surface
under one side of the vehicle is slip-
pery. The wheel is then braked to in-
crease traction in this situation.
\4
ESP
® still intervenes to stabilize the
vehicle
nf_BA.book Page 74 Friday, January 25, 2008 3:53 PM