2008 HONDA ELEMENT belt

For added protection, the f ront seat
belts are equipped with automatic
seat belt tensioners. When activated,
the tensioners immediately tighten
the belts to help hold the driver and
a f ront passenger in position.For saf ety, you should check the
condition of your seat belts regularly.
Pull each belt out f ully, and look f or
f rays, cuts, burns, and wear. Check
that the latches work smoothly and
the belts retract easily. If a belt does
not retract easily, cleaning the belt
may correct the problem (see page
). Any belt that is not in good
condition or working properly will
not provide good protection and
should be replaced as soon as
possible.
Honda provides a limited warranty
on seat belts. See your booklet f or
details.
The tensioners are designed to
activate in any collision severe
enough to cause the f ront airbags to
deploy, or if a sensor detects your
vehicle is about to roll over (see page
).
When the tensioners are activated,
the seat belts will remain tight until
they are unbuckled.
The tensioners can also be activated
during a collision in which the f ront
airbags . In this case, the
airbags would not be needed, but the
additional restraint could be helpf ul.
If a side airbag or side curtain airbag
deploys during a side impact, the
tensioner on that side of the vehicle
will also deploy. 32
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Honda
Warranty Inf ormation
do not deploy
Seat Belt Maintenance
A utomatic Seat Belt T ensioners
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
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The dealer should also inspect the
anchors f or damage and replace
them if needed. If the automatic seat
belt tensioners activate during a
crash, they must be replaced.
If a seat belt is worn during a crash,
it must be replaced by your dealer. A
belt that has been worn during a
crash may not provide the same level
of protection in a subsequent crash.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
23
Not checking or maintaining
seat belts can result in serious
injury or death if the seat belts
do not work properly when
needed.
Check your seat belts regularly
and have any problem
corrected as soon as possible.
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A irbag System Components
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
24
(1)(3)
(5)
(4)(13)
(7)(5)
(4)
(6)
(10)
(12)
(11)
(8) (2)
(9)
(10)
(14)
(15)
(6) Driver’s Seat Position Sensor
(7) Front Passenger’s Weight Sensors
(8) Front Impact Sensors
(9) Passenger Airbag Off Indicator
(10) Side Impact Sensors (First)
(1) Driver’s Front Airbag
(2) Passenger’s Front Airbag
(3) Control Unit
(4) Front Seat Belt Tensioners
(5) Side Airbags
(11) Occupant Position Detection System (OPDS) Sensors
(12) Supplemental Restraint System (
SRS) Indicator
(13) Rollover Sensor
(14) Seat Belt Buckle Tensioners
(15) Rear Safing Sensor
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Automatic front seat belt
tensioners (see page ).
Sensors that can detect a
moderate to severe front impact,
side impact, or rollover.
Sensors that can detect whether a
child is in the passenger’s side
airbag path and signal the control
unit to turn the airbag of f (see
page ).An indicator on the dashboard that
alerts you that the passenger’s
f ront airbag has been turned of f
(see page ).
Emergency backup power in case
your vehicle’s electrical system is
disconnected in a crash.
An indicator on the instrument
panel that alerts you that the
passenger’s side airbag has been
turned of f (see page ).
Sensors that can detect whether
the driver’s seat belt and the f ront
passenger’s seat belt are latched
or unlatched (see page ).
A driver’s seat position sensor that
monitors the distance of the seat
from the front airbag. If the seat is
too f ar f orward, the airbag will
inf late with less f orce (see page ). Weight sensors that monitor the
weight on the f ront passenger’s
seat. If the weight is about 65 lbs
(29 kg) or less (the weight of an
inf ant or small child), the
passenger’s f ront airbag will be
turned of f (see page ).
A sophisticated electronic system
that continually monitors and
records inf ormation about the
sensors, the control unit, the
airbag activators, the seat belt
tensioners, and driver and f ront
passenger seat belt use when the
ignition switch is in the ON (II)
position.
An indicator on the instrument
panel that alerts you to a possible
problem with your airbags,
sensors, or seat belt tensioners
(see page ).
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29 33 34
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
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Af ter inf lating, the f ront airbags
immediately def late, so they won’t
interf ere with the driver’s visibility,
or the ability to steer or operate
other controls.
Although both airbags normally
inf late within a split second of each
other, it is possible f or only one
airbag to deploy.
This can happen if the severity of a
collision is at the margin, or
threshold, that determines whether
or not the airbags will deploy. In
such cases, the seat belt will provide
suf f icient protection, and the
supplemental protection of f ered by
the airbag would be minimal.
If you ever have a moderate to
severe f rontal collision, sensors will
detect the vehicle’s rapid
deceleration.
If the rate of deceleration is high
enough, the control unit will instantly
inf late the driver’s and f ront
passenger’s airbags, at the time and
with the f orce needed. During a f rontal crash, your seat belt
restrains your lower body and torso,
and the f ront airbag helps protect
your head and chest.
Only the driver’s airbag can deploy if
there is no passenger in the f ront
seat, or if the advanced airbag
system has turned the passenger’s
airbag off (see page ).
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CONT INUED
How Your Front Airbags Work
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
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Your f ront airbags are also dual-
threshold airbags. Airbags with this
f eature have two deployment
thresholds that depend on whether
sensors detect the occupant is
wearing a seat belt or not.
Your f ront airbags are dual-stage
airbags. This means they have two
inf lation stages that can be ignited
sequentially or simultaneously,
depending on crash severity.
In a crash, both stages
will ignite simultaneously to provide
the quickest and greatest protection.
In a crash, one stage will
ignite first, then the second stage
will ignite a split second later. This
provides longer airbag inf lation time
with a little less force.
The total time for inflation and
def lation is one-tenth of a second, so
f ast that most occupants are not
aware that the airbags deployed until
they see them lying in their laps.
After a crash, you may see what
looks like smoke. This is actually
powder f rom the airbag’s surf ace.
Although the powder is not harmf ul,
people with respiratory problems
mayexperiencesometemporary
discomf ort. If this occurs, get out of
the vehicle as soon as it is saf e to do
so.
If the occupant’s belt is ,
the airbag will deploy at a slightly
lower threshold, because the
occupant would need extra
protection.
If the occupant’s belt is , the
airbag will inf late at a slightly higher
threshold, when the airbag would be
needed to supplement the protection
provided by the seat belt.
Dual-T hreshold A irbags
Dual-Stage A irbags
more severeless severe not lat ched
latched
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
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CONT INUED
Your f ront airbags are also advanced
airbags. The main purpose of this
feature is to help prevent airbag-
caused injuries to short drivers and
children who ride in f ront.
For both advanced airbags to work
properly:Occupants must sit upright and
wear their seat belts properly.
Back-seat passengers should not
put their f eet under the f ront seats.
Failure to f ollow these instructions
could damage the sensors or prevent
them f rom working properly. The driver’s advanced front airbag
system includes a seat position
sensor under the seat. If the seat is
too f ar f orward, the airbag will
inf late with less f orce, regardless of
the severity of the impact.
The passenger’s advanced f ront
airbag system has weight sensors
under the seat. Although Honda
does not encourage carrying an
inf ant or small child in f ront, if the
sensors detect the weight of an
inf ant or small child (up to about 65
lbs or 29 kg), the system will
automatically turn the passenger’s
front airbag off.
Do not spill any liquids on or
under the seats, cover the sensors,
or put any objects or metal items
under the f ront seats.
Be aware that objects placed on the
passenger’s seat can also cause the
airbag to be turned off.
If there is a problem with the sensor,
the SRS indicator will come on, and
the airbag will inf late in the normal
manner regardless of the driver’s
seating position.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
Advanced Airbags
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
29
PASSENGER’S SEAT
WEIGHT SENSOR
DRIVER’S SEAT
POSITION SENSOR
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Moving the f ront seat f orcibly
back against cargo on the seat or
f loor behind it.
When the airbag is turned of f , a
‘‘passenger airbag of f ’’ indicator in
the center of the dashboard comes
on (see page ).
Hanging heavy items on the f ront
passenger seat, or placing heavy
items in the seat-back pocket.
Moving the front seat or seat-back
f orcibly back against the f olded
rear seat.
If the weight sensors detect there is
no passenger in the f ront seat, the
airbag will be off. However, the
passenger airbag of f indicator will
not come on.
To ensure that the passenger’s
advanced front airbag system will
work properly,
This includes:
A rear passenger pushing or
pulling on the back of the f ront
passenger’s seat. If your vehicle has optional f loor
mats,makesurethematbehindthe
f ront passenger’s seat is hooked to
thefloormatanchor(seepage).
If it is not, the mat may interf ere
with the proper operation of the
sensors and operation of the seat.
If you ever have a moderate to
severe side impact, sensors will
detect rapid acceleration and signal
the control unit to instantly inf late
either the driver’s or the passenger’s
side airbag and activate the seat belt
tensioner on the af f ected side.
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Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
do not do anyt hing
t hat would increase or decrease t he weight on the f ront passenger’s seat.
How Your Side A irbags Work
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