2008 FORD E SERIES seats

•Front and rear seats
All safety restraints in the vehicle are combination lap and shoulder
belts. All of the passenger combination lap and shoulder belts have two
types of locking modes described below:
Vehicle sensitive mode
This is the normal retractor mode, which allows free shoulder belt length
adjustment to your movements and locking in response to vehicle
movement. For example, if the driver brakes suddenly or turns a corner
sharply, or the vehicle receives an impact of approximately 5 mph
(8 km/h) or more, the combination safety belts will lock to help reduce
forward movement of the driver and passengers.
Automatic locking mode
When to use the automatic locking mode
In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-locked. The belt will
still retract to remove any slack in the shoulder belt. The automatic
locking mode is not available on the driver safety belt.
This mode should be usedany timea child safety seat, except a
booster, is installed in passenger front or rear seating position (if
equipped). Children 12 years old and under should be properly
restrained in the rear seat whenever possible. Refer toSafety restraints
for childrenorSafety seats for childrenlater in this chapter.
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How to use the automatic locking mode
•Buckle the combination lap and
shoulder belt.
•Grasp the shoulder portion and
pull downward until the entire
belt is pulled out.
•Allow the belt to retract. As the belt retracts, you will hear a clicking
sound. This indicates the safety belt is now in the automatic locking
mode.
How to disengage the automatic locking mode
Disconnect the combination lap/shoulder belt and allow it to retract
completely to disengage the automatic locking mode and activate the
vehicle sensitive (emergency) locking mode.
After any vehicle collision, the safety belt systems at all outboard
seating positions (except the driver position, which does not
have this feature) must be checked by an authorized dealer to verify
that the automatic locking retractor feature for child seats is still
functioning properly. In addition, all safety belts should be checked for
proper function.
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Passenger airbag ON/OFF switch (if equipped)
Note: The passenger airbag ON/OFF
switch (if equipped) may be on
vehicles with no rear seats and a
gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)
greater than 8500. SeeVehicle
loading – with and without a
trailerin theTires, Wheels and
loadingchapter.
An airbag ON/OFF switch
(if equipped) may have
been installed in this vehicle.
Before driving,alwayslook at the
face of the switch to be sure the
switch is in the proper position in
accordance with these instructions
and warnings. Failure to put the
switch in a proper position can
increase the risk of serious injury
or death in a collision.
Turning the passenger airbag off
1. Insert the ignition key, turn the
switch to OFF position and hold in
OFF position while removing the
key.
2. When the ignition is turned to the
ON position the OFF light
illuminates briefly, momentarily
shuts off and then turns back on.
This indicates that the passenger
airbag is deactivated.
If the light fails to illuminate when the passenger air bag switch
is in the OFF position and the ignition switch is in ON, have the
passenger air bag switch serviced at your Ford or Lincoln-Mercury
dealer immediately.
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In order to avoid inadvertent activation of the switch, always
remove the ignition key from the passenger air bag ON/OFF
switch.
An infant in a rear-facing seat faces a high risk of serious or fatal
injuries from a deploying passenger airbag. Rear facing infant
seats should NEVER be placed in the front seats, unless the passenger
airbag is turned off.
Turning the passenger airbag back on
The passenger airbag remains OFF until you turn it back ON.
1. Insert the ignition key and turn
the switch to ON.
2. The OFF light will briefly
illuminate when the ignition is
turned to On. This indicates that the
passenger airbag is operational.
If the OFF light is illuminated when the passenger airbag switch
is in the ON position and the ignition switch is in ON, have the
passenger airbag switch serviced at an authorized dealer immediately.
The passenger side airbag should always be ON (the airbag OFF light
shouldnotbe illuminated) unless the passenger is a person who meets
the requirements stated either in Category 1, 2 or 3 of the
NHTSA/Transport Canada deactivation criteria which follows.
The safety belts for the driver and right front passenger seating
positions have been specifically designed to function together
with the airbags in certain types of crashes. When you turn OFF your
airbag, you not only lose the protection of the airbag, you also may
reduce the effectiveness of your safety belt system, which was
designed to work with the airbag. If you are not a person who meets
the requirements stated in the NHTSA/Transport Canada deactivation
criteria turning OFF the airbag can increase the risk of serious injury
or death in a collision.
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If your vehicle has rear seats, always transport children who are
12 and younger in the rear seat. Always use safety belts and
child restraints properly. DO NOT place a child in a rear facing infant
seat in the front seat unless your vehicle is equipped with an airbag
ON/OFF switch and the passenger airbag is turned OFF. This is
because the back of the infant seat is too close to the inflating airbag
and the risk of a fatal injury to the infant when the airbag inflates is
substantial.
The vast majority of drivers and passengers are much safer with an
airbag than without. To do their job and reduce the risk of life
threatening injuries, airbags must open with great force, and this force
can pose a potentially deadly risk in some situations, particularly when a
front seat occupant is not properly buckled up. The most effective way
to reduce the risk of unnecessary airbag injuries without reducing the
overall safety of the vehicle is to make sure all occupants are properly
restrained in the vehicle, especially in the front seat. This provides the
protection of safety belts and permits the airbags to provide the
additional protection they were designed to provide. If you choose to
deactivate your airbag, you are losing the very significant risk reducing
benefits of the airbag and you are also reducing the effectiveness of the
safety belts, because safety belts in modern vehicles are designed to
work as a safety system with the airbags.
Read all airbag warning labels in the vehicle as well as the other
important airbag instructions and warnings in this Owner’s Guide.
NHTSA deactivation criteria (excluding Canada)
1.Infant.An infant (less than 1 year old) must ride in the front seat
because:
•the vehicle has no rear seat;
•the vehicle has a rear seat too small to accommodate a rear-facing
infant seat; or
•the infant has a medical condition which, according to the infant’s
physician, makes it necessary for the infant to ride in the front so that
the driver can constantly monitor the child’s condition.
2.Child age 1 to 12.A child age 1 to 12 must ride in the front seat
because:
•the vehicle has no rear seat;
•although children ages 1 to 12 ride in the rear seat(s) whenever
possible, children ages 1 to 12 sometimes must ride in the front
because no space is available in the rear seat(s) of the vehicle; or
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•the child has a medical condition that, according to the child’s
physician, makes it necessary for the child to ride in the front seat so
that the driver can monitor the child’s condition.
3.Medical condition:A passenger has a medical condition that,
according to his or her physician:
•poses a special risk for the passenger if the airbag deploys; and
•makes the potential harm from the passenger airbag deployment
greater than the potential harm from turning OFF the airbag and
experiencing a crash without the protection offered by the airbag
This vehicle has special energy management safety belts for the
driver and right front passenger. These particular belts are
specifically designed to work with airbags to help reduce the risk of
injury in a collision. The energy management safety belt is designed to
give or release additional belt webbing in some accidents to reduce
concentration of force on an occupant’s chest and reduce the risk of
certain bone fractures and injuries to underlying organs. In a crash, if
the airbag is turned OFF, this energy management safety belt might
permit the person wearing the belt to move forward enough to incur a
serious or fatal injury. The more severe the crash, and the heavier the
occupant, the greater the risk is. Be sure the airbag is turned ON for
any person who does not qualify under the NHTSA deactivation
criteria.
SAFETY RESTRAINTS FOR CHILDREN
See the following sections for directions on how to properly use safety
restraints for children. Also seeAirbag supplemental restraint system
(SRS)in this chapter for special instructions about using airbags.
Important child restraint precautions
You are required by law to use safety restraints for children in the U.S.
and Canada. If small children (generally children who are four years old
or younger and who weigh 18 kg [40 lb.] or less) ride in your vehicle, you
must put them in safety seats made especially for children. Many states
require that children use approved booster seats until they are eight
years old. Check your local and state or provincial laws for specific
requirements regarding the safety of children in your vehicle. When
possible, always place children under age 12 in the rear seat of your
vehicle. Accident statistics suggest that children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating position.
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Never let a passenger hold a child on his or her lap while the
vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the child from
injury in a collision.
Always follow the instructions and warnings that come with any infant or
child restraint you might use.
Ford recommends using child safety seats equipped with LATCH
attachments, attached to LATCH anchors and tether anchors. Some child
seat manufacturers sell LATCH accessory belts that attach child seats
that are not equipped with LATCH attachments onto LATCH anchors.
SeeAttaching safety seats with LATCH attachments for child seat
anchorsin this section for seating positions with LATCH anchors.
If you install a forward-facing child safety seat using the vehicle safety
belts:
•use only seats equipped with lap-shoulder belts;
•Ford recommends placing forward-facing safety seats in the 2nd row
and using top tether straps for added protection.
For more information on top tether straps, seeAttaching safety seats
with tether strapsin this section.
Any booster seat that places the vehicle’s lap belt or shoulder belt
around a shield above and ahead of the child’s hips should not be used in
this vehicle.
Because the last row of seats in the 12 passenger and 15
passenger configuration is not equipped with LATCH anchors
and is spaced closer to the row of seats in front,Do notuse
forward-facing or rear-facing child seats (other than belt-positioning
boosters) in the last row.
Children and safety belts
If the child is the proper size, restrain the child in a safety seat. Children
who are too large for child safety seats (as specified by your child safety
seat manufacturer) should always wear safety belts.
Follow all the important safety restraint and airbag precautions that
apply to adult passengers in your vehicle.
If the shoulder belt portion of a combination lap and shoulder belt can
be positioned so it does not cross or rest in front of the child’s face or
neck, the child should wear the lap and shoulder belt. Moving the child
closer to the center of the vehicle may help provide a good shoulder belt
fit.
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Do not leave children, unreliable adults, or pets unattended in
your vehicle.
Child booster seats
Children outgrow a typical convertible or toddler seat when they weigh
40 lb. (18 kg) and are around 4 years of age. Although the lap/shoulder
belt will provide some protection, these children are still too small for
lap/shoulder belts to fit properly, which could increase the risk of serious
injury in a crash.
To improve the fit of both the lap and shoulder belt on children who
have outgrown child safety seats, Ford Motor Company recommends use
of a belt-positioning booster.
Booster seats position a child so that safety belts fit better. They lift the
child up so that the lap belt rests low across the hips and the knees
bend comfortably. Booster seats may also make the shoulder belt fit
better and more comfortably. Try to keep the belt near the middle of the
shoulder.
When children should use booster seats
Children need to use booster seats from the time they outgrow the
toddler seat until they are big enough for the vehicle seat and
lap/shoulder belt to fit properly. Generally this is when they weigh about
80 lb. (36 kg) (about 8 to 12 years old).
Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions:
•Can the child sit all the way back
against the vehicle seat back with
knees bent comfortably at the
edge of the seat without
slouching?
•Does the lap belt rest low across the hips?
•Is the shoulder belt centered on the shoulder and chest?
•Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
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