2008 FORD E SERIES Owners Manual

Safety belt warning light and indicator chime
The safety belt warning light illuminates in the instrument cluster and a
chime sounds to remind the occupants to fasten their safety belts.
Conditions of operation
If... Then...
The driver’s safety belt is not
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the ON
position...The safety belt warning light
illuminates and the warning chime
sounds 4-8 seconds.
The driver’s safety belt is
buckled while the indicator
light is illuminated and the
warning chime is sounding...The safety belt warning light and
warning chime turn off.
The driver’s safety belt is
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the ON
position...The safety belt warning light and the
warning chime will remain off.
Belt-Minder
The Belt-Minder
feature is a supplemental warning to the safety belt
warning function. This feature provides additional reminders to the
driver that the driver’s safety belt is unbuckled by intermittently
sounding a chime and illuminating the safety belt warning lamp in the
instrument cluster.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
81

If... Then...
The driver’s safety belt is not
buckled approximately 5
seconds after the safety belt
warning light has turned off...The Belt-Minder
feature is activated
- the safety belt warning light
illuminates and the warning chime
sounds for 6 seconds every 30
seconds, repeating for approximately
5 minutes or until safety belt is
buckled.
The driver’s safety belt is
buckled while the safety belt
indicator light is illuminated
and the safety belt warning
chime is sounding...The Belt-Minder
feature will not
activate.
The driver’s safety belt is
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the ON
position...The Belt-Minder
feature will not
activate.
The following are reasons most often given for not wearing safety belts:
(All statistics based on U.S. data)
Reasons given... Consider...
“Crashes are rare events”36700 crashes occur every day.The
more we drive, the more we are
exposed to “rare” events, even for
good drivers.1 in 4 of us will be
seriously injured in a crash during
our lifetime.
“I’m not going far”3of4fatal crashes occur within25
miles of home.
“Belts are uncomfortable” We design our safety belts to enhance
comfort. If you are uncomfortable -
try different positions for the safety
belt upper anchorage and seatback
which should be as upright as
possible; this can improve comfort.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
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Reasons given... Consider...
“I was in a hurry”Prime time for an accident.
Belt-Minder
reminds us to take a few
seconds to buckle up.
“Safety belts don’t work”Safety belts,when used properly,
reduce risk of deathto front seat
occupants by45% in cars,and by
60% in light trucks.
“Traffic is light”Nearly 1 of 2 deaths occur in
single-vehicle crashes,many when
no other vehicles are around.
“Belts wrinkle my clothes” Possibly, but a serious crash can do
much more than wrinkle your clothes,
particularly if you are unbelted.
“The people I’m with don’t
wear belts”Set the example, teen deaths occur 4
times more often in vehicles with
TWO or MORE people. Children and
younger brothers/sisters imitate
behavior they see.
“I have an airbag” Airbags offer greater protection when
used with safety belts. Frontal airbags
are not designed to inflate in rear and
side crashes or rollovers.
“I’d rather be thrown clear”Peoplewho areejected are 40
times more likely to DIE.Safety
belts help prevent ejection, WE CAN’T
“PICK OUR CRASH”.
Do not sit on top of a buckled safety belt or insert a latchplate
into the buckle to avoid the Belt-Minder
chime. To do so may
adversely affect the performance of the vehicle’s air bag system
One time disable
Any time the safety belt is buckled and then unbuckled during an
ignition ON cycle, the Belt-Minder
will be disabled for that ignition
cycle only.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
83

Deactivating/activating the Belt-Minderfeature
Read Steps1-5thoroughly before proceeding with the
deactivation/activation programming procedure.
The Belt-Minder
feature can be deactivated/activated by performing the
following procedure:
Before following the procedure, make sure that:
•the parking brake is set
•the gearshift is in P (Park) (automatic transmission)
•the ignition switch is in the OFF position
•all vehicle doors are closed
•the driver’s safety belt is unbuckled
•the parklamps/headlamps are in the OFF position
While the design allows you to deactivate your Belt-Minder
, this
system is designed to improve your chances of being safely
belted and surviving an accident. We recommend you leave the
Belt-Minder
system activated for yourself and others who may use the
vehicle. To reduce the risk of injury, do not deactivate/activate the
Belt-Minder
feature while driving the vehicle.
1. Turn the ignition switch to the ON position. DO NOT START THE
ENGINE.
2. Wait until the safety belt warning light turns off (Approximately 1
minute).
•Step 3 must be completed within 50 seconds after the safety belt
warning light turns off.
3. At a moderate speed, buckle then unbuckle the safety belt nine times,
ending with the safety belt in the unbuckled state.
•After Step 3 is complete, the safety belt warning light will be turned
on for three seconds.
•Belt-Minder
will automatically exit programming mode without
changing its enable status if Step 4 does not occur within 10 seconds
of the end of Step 3.
4. Within approximately seven seconds of the light turning off, buckle
then unbuckle the safety belt.
•This will disable the Belt-Minder
feature for that seating position if it
is currently enabled. As confirmation, the safety belt warning light will
flash four times per second for three seconds.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
84

•This will enable the Belt-Minder
feature for that seating position if it
is currently disabled. As confirmation, the safety belt warning light will
flash four times per second for three seconds, followed by three
seconds with the light off, then followed by the safety belt warning
light flashing four times per second for three seconds again.
5. After receiving confirmation, the deactivation/activation procedure is
complete.
Safety belt extension assembly
If the safety belt is too short when fully extended, there is a 9 inch (23
cm) or 12 inch (31 cm) safety belt extension assembly that can be added
(part number 611C22). This assembly can be obtained from an
authorized dealer.
Use only extensions manufactured by the same supplier as the safety
belt. Manufacturer identification is located at the end of the webbing on
the label. Also, use the safety belt extension only if the safety belt is too
short for you when fully extended.
Use the shortest extender assembly that will provide adequate fit.
Do not use extensions to change the fit of the shoulder belt
across the torso.
Safety belt maintenance
Inspect the safety belt systems periodically to make sure they work
properly and are not damaged. Inspect the safety belts to make sure
there are no nicks, tears or cuts. Replace if necessary. All safety belt
assemblies, including retractors, buckles, front safety belt buckle
assemblies, buckle support assemblies (slide bar-if equipped), shoulder
belt height adjusters (if equipped), shoulder belt guide on seatback (if
equipped), child safety seat LATCH and tether anchors, and attaching
hardware, should be inspected after a collision. Ford Motor Company
recommends that all safety belt assemblies in use in vehicles involved in
a collision be replaced. However, if the collision was minor and an
authorized dealer finds that the belts do not show damage and continue
to operate properly, they do not need to be replaced. Safety belt
assemblies not in use during a collision should also be inspected and
replaced if either damage or improper operation is noted.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
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Failure to inspect and if necessary replace the safety belt
assembly under the above conditions could result in severe
personal injuries in the event of a collision.
For proper care of soiled safety belts, refer toInteriorin theCleaning
chapter.
AIRBAG SUPPLEMENTAL RESTRAINT SYSTEM (SRS)
Important SRS precautions
The SRS is designed to work with
the safety belt to help protect the
driver and right front passenger
from certain upper body injuries.
Airbags DO NOT inflate slowly;
there is a risk of injury from a
deploying airbag.
All occupants of the vehicle, including the driver, should always
properly wear their safety belts, even when an air bag
supplemental restraint system (SRS) is provided.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
86

Always transport children 12 years old and under in the back
seat and always properly use appropriate child restraints. Never
place a rear-facing child seat in front of an active airbag. If you must
transport a forward-facing child in the front seat, move the seat all the
way back and use appropriate restraints.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
recommends a minimum distance of at least 25 cm (10 inches)
between an occupant’s chest and the driver airbag module.
Never place your arm over the air bag module as a deploying air
bag can result in serious arm fractures or other injuries.
To properly position yourself away from the airbag:
•Move your seat to the rear as far as you can while still reaching the
pedals comfortably.
•Recline the seat slightly one or two degrees from the upright position.
Do not put anything on or over the air bag module. Placing
objects on or over the air bag inflation area may cause those
objects to be propelled by the air bag into your face and torso causing
serious injury.
Do not attempt to service, repair, or modify the airbag
supplemental restraint systems or its fuses. See your authorized
dealer.
Modifying or adding equipment to the front end of the vehicle
(including frame, bumper, front end body structure and tow
hooks) may affect the performance of the airbag system, increasing the
risk of injury. Do not modify the front end of the vehicle.
Additional equipment may affect the performance of the airbag
sensors increasing the risk of injury. Please refer to theBody
Builders Layout Bookfor instructions about the appropriate
installation of additional equipment.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
87

Children and airbags
Children must always be properly
restrained. Accident statistics
suggest that children are safer when
properly restrained in the rear
seating positions than in the front
seating position. Failure to follow
these instructions may increase the
risk of injury in a collision.
Airbags can kill or injure a
child in a child seat.
NEVERplace a rear-facing child
seat in front of an active airbag. If
you must use a forward-facing
child seat in the front seat, move
the seat all the way back.
How does the airbag supplemental restraint system work?
The airbag SRS is designed to
activate when the vehicle sustains a
longitudinal deceleration sufficient
to cause the airbag sensors to close
an electrical circuit that initiates
airbag inflation. The fact that the
airbags did not inflate in a collision
does not mean that something is
wrong with the system. Rather, it
means the forces were not sufficient
enough to cause activation. Airbags
are designed to inflate in frontal and
near-frontal collisions, not rollover, side-impact, or rear-impacts unless
the collision causes sufficient longitudinal deceleration.
2008 Econoline(eco)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA(fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
88