
Safe driving17
Safety First
Operating instructions
Practical tips
Te c h n i c a l  D a t a
•
Never lay or fit floor mats or other floor coverings over the original floor 
mats. This would reduce the pedal area and could obstruct the pedals. Risk 
of accident.
Stowing luggageLoading the boot
All luggage and other loose object s must be safely secured in 
the luggage compartment.Unsecured objects which shift back and forth could impair the 
driving safety or driving characteristics of the vehicle by shifting the 
centre of gravity.
– Distribute the load evenly  in the luggage compartment.
– Lay and stow heavy luggage as far forward as possible in the  luggage compartment.
– Stow heavy luggage as low as possible in the luggage compart- ment.
– Secure heavy objects to the fitted fastening rings  ⇒page 18.
WARNING
•
Loose luggage and other objects in the boot could cause serious inju-
ries.
•
Always stow objects in the luggage compartment and secure them on 
the fastening rings.
•
Use suitable specialist straps to secure heavy objects.
•
During sudden manoeuvres or accidents, loose objects can be thrown 
forward, injuring vehicle occupants or passers-by. This increased risk of 
injury will be further increased if a loose object is struck by an inflating 
airbag. If this happens, objects can be transformed into “missiles”. Risk of 
fatal injury.
•
Please note that the centre of gravity may shift when transporting 
heavy objects; this may affect the vehicle's handling and lead to an acci-
dent. Therefore, it is essential to  adjust your speed and driving style 
accordingly, to avoid accidents.
•
Never exceed the allowed axle loads  or allowed maximum weight. If the 
allowed axle load or the allowed total weight is exceeded, the driving char-
acteristics of the vehicle may change, leading to accidents, injuries and 
damage to the vehicle.
•
Never leave your vehicle unattended, especially when the tailgate is 
open. Children could climb into the luggage compartment closing the door 
behind them; they will remain trapped without help and there is a mortal 
risk.
•
Never allow children to play in or  around the vehicle. Close and lock 
both the tailgate and all the doors when you leave the vehicle. Before you 
lock the vehicle, make sure that ther e are no adults or children in the 
vehicle.
•
Never transport passengers in the luggage compartment. Every 
passenger must be properly belted in ⇒ page 19.
WARNING (continued)
WARNING (continued)
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Safe driving
18
Note•
Air circulation in the vehicle helps re duce fogging of the windows. Used 
air escapes through ventilation slits in the side trim of the luggage compart-
ment. Ensure that the ventilation slits are never covered.
•
Straps for securing the load to the fastening rings are commercially 
available.
Fastening rings*
There can be four fastening rings in the boot for fastening 
luggage and other objects.– Always use suitable and undamaged straps to secure luggage  and other objects to the fastening rings  ⇒ in “Loading the 
boot” on page 17.
– Pull up the fastening rings to attach the straps.During a collision or an accident, even  small and light objects can build up so 
much energy that they can cause very severe injuries. The amount of “kinetic 
energy” depends on the speed of the vehicle and the weight of the object. 
The most significant factor, however, is the speed of the vehicle.
Example: An object weighing 4.5 kg is lying unsecured in the vehicle. During 
a frontal collision at a s peed of 50 km/h, this object generates a force corre-
sponding to 20 times its weight. That means that the effective weight of the 
object increases to about 90 kg. You can imagine the severity of the injuries 
which might be sustained if this “projectile” strikes an occupant as it flies 
through the passenger compartment. This increased risk of injury will be 
further increased if a loose object is struck by an inflating airbag.
WARNING
•
If pieces of baggage or other objects are secured to the fastening rings 
with inappropriate or damaged retaining cords, injuries could result in the 
event of braking manoeuvres or accidents.
•
To prevent pieces of luggage or other objects from flying forward, 
always use appropriate retaining cords which are secured to the fastening 
rings.
•
Never secure a child seat on the fastening rings.
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Seat belts19
Safety First
Operating instructions
Practical tips
Te c h n i c a l  D a t a
Seat beltsBrief IntroductionBefore driving: remember your seat belt!
Wearing a seat belt properly can save your life!In this chapter you will learn the importance of wearing seat belts, 
how they work and how to properly fasten, adjust and wear them.
– Read and consider all the information as well as the warnings in 
this chapter.
WARNING
•
If seat belts are worn incorrectly or not at all, the risk of severe injuries 
increases.
•
Properly worn seat belts can reduce severe injuries in case of sudden 
braking manoeuvres or accidents. For safety reasons, you and your passen-
gers must always wear the seat belts properly while the vehicle is moving.
•
Pregnant women or people with physical disabilities must also use seat 
belts. Like all other passengers, these people can also sustain severe inju-
ries if they are not wearing their seat belts properly.
Number of seatsYour vehicle has five  seats, two on the front part and three on the rear part. 
Each seat is equipped with a three-point seat belt.
WARNING
•
More people than available seats must never be transported in your 
vehicle.
•
Every passenger in the vehicle must  properly fasten and wear the seat 
belt belonging to his or her seat. Chil dren must be protected with an appro-
priate child restraint system.
Seat belt warning lamp *
The warning lamp acts as a reminder to the driver to fasten 
the seat belt.Before starting the vehicle:
– Fasten your safety belt securely.
– Instruct your passengers to fasten their seat belts properly before  driving off.
– Protect children by using a child seat according to the child's  height and weight.After the ignition has been switched on, the warning lamp   on the instru-
ment panel lights up
1) if the driver has not fastened his/her seat belt, and a 
warning  signal* is  heard if the  vehicle  is  driven at  more than 30 km/h  for 90 
seconds.
1)Depending on the model version
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Seat belts
20The warning lamp* 
 is switched off if the driver seat belt is fastened while 
the ignition is switched on.
Why wear seat belts?Physical principles of frontal collisions
In the event of a frontal collision, a large amount of kinetic 
energy must be absorbed.
It is easy to explain how the laws of physics work in the case of a head-on 
collision: When a vehicle starts moving  ⇒fig. 7  there is a certain amount of 
energy known as “kinetic energy ”, both in the vehicle and in the occupants.
The amount of “kinetic energy” depends  on the speed of the vehicle and the 
weight of the vehicle and its passengers. The higher the speed and the 
greater the weight, the more energy there is to be “released” in an accident.
The most significant factor, however, is the speed of the vehicle. If the speed 
doubles from 25 km/h to 50 km/h, for example, the kinetic energy is multi-
plied by four.
Because the passengers in our example ar e not restrained by seat belts, the 
entire amount of kinetic energy has to be absorbed at the point of impact 
⇒ fig. 8 .
Even at speeds of 30 km/h to 50 km/h, the forces acting on bodies in a colli-
sion can easily exceed one tonne (1000 kg). At greater speed these forces are 
even higher.
Passengers not wearing seat belts are not “attached” to the vehicle. In a 
frontal collision, they will move forward at the same speed their vehicle was 
Fig. 7  Vehicle about to hit 
a wall: the occupants are 
not wearing seat belts
Fig. 8  The vehicle hits 
the wall: the occupants 
are not wearing seat belts
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Airbag system29
Safety First
Operating instructions
Practical tips
Te c h n i c a l  D a t a
Airbag systemBrief introductionWhy wear a seat belt and assume the correct sitting position?
For the inflating airbags to achieve the best protection, the 
sea t  b el t m u st  a l w ay s  be  w o rn  p ro p e rly  a n d t h e  co rrec t s i tt i ng  
position must be assumed.For your own safety and the safety  of the passengers, please ensure 
the following before driving:
– Always wear the seat belt properly  ⇒page 19.
– Adjust the driver's seat and the steering wheel correctly  ⇒page 10.
– Adjust the front passenger seat correctly  ⇒page 11.
– Adjust the head restraint correctly  ⇒page 13.
– Use the correct child restraint system to protect children in your  vehicle ⇒ page 45.The airbag is deployed at high speed in fractions of a second. If you have an 
incorrect seating position  at the time the airbag is deployed, it could cause 
you critical injuries. Therefore, it is essential that all passengers in the vehicle 
assume a correct sitting position while travelling.
A sharp braking before an accident may cause a passenger not wearing a seat 
belt to be thrown forward into the area of the deploying airbag. In this case,  the inflating airbag may inflict critical or fatal injuries on the occupant. This 
also applies to children.
Always maintain the greatest possible distance between yourself and the 
front airbag. This way, the front airbag
s can completely deploy when trig-
gered, providing their maximum protection.
The most important factors that will trigger an airbag are: the type of acci-
dent, the angle of collision and the s peed of the vehicle.
Whether the airbags are triggered depends primarily on the vehicle deceler-
ation rate resulting from the collision an d detected by the control unit. If the 
vehicle deceleration occurring during the collision and measured by the 
control unit remains below the specifie d reference values, the front, side 
and/or curtain airbag will not be triggered. Take into account that the visible 
damage in a vehicle involved in an ac cident, for whatever reason, is not an 
indication as to why the airbags had been triggered.
WARNING
•
Wearing the seat belt incorrectly or assuming an incorrect sitting posi-
tion can lead to critical or fatal injuries.
•
All occupants, including children, who are not properly belted can 
sustain critical or fatal injuries if the airbag is triggered. You should always 
transport all children up to 12 years of age on the rear seat. Never transport 
children in the vehicle if they are not  restrained or the restraint system is 
not appropriate for their age, size or weight.
•
If you are not wearing a seat belt, if you lean forward or to the side while 
travelling or assume an incorrect sitt ing position, there is a substantially 
increased risk of injury. This increased risk of injury will be further 
increased if you are struck by an inflating airbag.
•
To reduce the risk of injury from an inflating airbag, always wear the 
seat belt properly  ⇒page 19.
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Airbag system39
Safety First
Operating instructions
Practical tips
Te c h n i c a l  D a t a
Safety notes on the operation of the side airbag system
I f  a i r b a g s  a re  u s e d  c o r r e c t l y ,  t h e y  c a n  c o n s i d e ra b l y  re d u c e  t h e  
risk of injury in side impact collisions.
WARNING
•
If you do not wear a seat belt, if  you lean forward, or are not seated 
correctly while the vehicle is in motion, you are at a greater risk of injury if 
the side airbag system is triggered in an accident.
•
In order for the side airbags to provide their maximum protection, the 
prescribed sitting position must alwa ys be maintained with seat belts 
fastened while travelling.
•
Occupants of the outer seats must never carry any objects or pets in the 
deployment space between them and th e airbags, or allow children or 
other passengers to travel in this position. It is also important not to attach 
any accessories (such as cup holders) to the doors. This would impair the 
protection offered by the side airbags.
•
The built-in coat hooks should be used only for lightweight clothing. Do 
not leave any heavy or sharp-edged objects in the pockets.
•
Great forces, such as hard blows or kicks, must not be exerted upon the 
backrest bolster because the system may be damaged. In this case, the 
side airbags would not be triggered.
•
Under no circumstances should protective covers be fitted over the 
driver seat or front passenger seat unless the covers have been expressly 
approved for use in your vehicle. Because the airbag is triggered from the 
side of the backrest, the use of non-approved seat covers would obstruct 
the side airbag, seriously reducing the airbag's effectiveness  ⇒page 208, 
“Accessories, parts replacement and modifications”.
•
Any damage to the original seat uphol stery or around the seams of the 
side airbag units must be repaired immediately by a qualified workshop.
•
The airbags provide protection for just one accident; replace them once 
they have deployed.
•
When children assume an incorrect sitting position, they expose them-
selves to an increased risk of injury in the event of an accident. This is 
particularly the case if the child is travelling on the front passenger seat 
and the airbag system is triggered in  an accident; this could have critical 
consequences including serious injury or death  ⇒page 45, “Child safety”.
•
Any work on the side airbag system or removal and installation of the 
airbag components for other repairs (such as removal of the front seat) 
should only be performed by a qualified workshop. Otherwise, faults may 
occur during the airbag system operation.
•
Do not attempt to modify components of the airbag system in any way.
•
The side and head airbags are managed through sensors located in the 
interior of the front doors. To ensure the correct functioning of the side and 
head airbags neither the doors nor the  door panels should be modified in 
any way (e.g. fitting loudspeakers). If  the front door is damaged, the airbag 
system may not work correctly. All work carried out on the front door must 
be made in a qualified workshop.WARNING (continued)
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Airbag system
42•
There must be no other persons, animals or objects between the occu-
pants of the outer seats and the deployment space of the curtain airbags 
so that the curtain airbag can deploy  without restriction and provide the 
greatest possible protection. Therefore, sun blinds which have not been 
expressly approved for use in your vehicle may not be attached to the side 
windows ⇒ page 208, “Accessories, parts replacement and modifica-
tions”.
•
The built-in coat hooks should be used only for lightweight clothing. Do 
not leave any heavy or sharp-edged objects in the pockets. Please, do not 
hang the clothes on coat hangers.
•
The airbags provide protection for just one accident; replace them once 
they have deployed.
•
Any work on the curtain airbag system or removal and installation of 
the airbag components for other repairs  (such as removal of the roof lining) 
should only be performed by a qualified workshop. Otherwise, faults may 
occur during the airbag system operation.
•
Do not attempt to modify components of the airbag system in any way.
•
The side and head airbags are managed through sensors located in the 
interior of the front doors. To ensure the correct functioning of the side and 
head airbags neither the doors nor the  door panels should be modified in 
any way (e.g. fitting loudspeakers). If the front door is damaged, the airbag 
system may not work correctly. All work carried out on the front door must 
be made in a qualified workshop.WARNING (continued)
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Child safety45
Safety First
Operating instructions
Practical tips
Te c h n i c a l  D a t a
Child safetyBrief introductionIntroduction
Statistics show that children are generally safer on the rear 
seat than on the front passenger seat.We recommend that children under 12 years of age are transported on the 
rear seats. Children travelling on th e rear seat must use a child restraint 
system or the seat belts provided, depending on their age, height and 
weight. For safety reasons, the child r estraint system should be installed in 
the centre of the rear seat or behind the front passenger's seat.
The physical laws involved and the forces acting in a collision apply also to 
children.  ⇒page 20, “Why wear seat belts?”.  But unlike adults, children do 
not have muscle and bone structures fully developed. This means that chil-
dren are subject to a greater risk of injury.
To reduce this risk, children must always use special child restraint systems 
when travelling in the vehicle.
We recommend the use of child safety products from the SEAT Genuine Acces-
sories Program, which includes systems for all ages made by “Peke”
2).
These systems have been especially designed and approved, complying with 
the ECE-R44. regulation.
Follow the manufacturer's instructions and observe any statutory require-
ments when installing and using child seats. Always read and note 
⇒ page 45. We recommend you to include together
 with the on-board documentation, 
the manufacturer's Child Se at instructions manual.
Safety notes on using child seats
Proper use of child seats substantially reduces the risk of 
injury in an accident!As the driver, you are responsible for any children you transport in 
your vehicle.
– Protect your children by properly using appropriate child seats 
⇒page 47.
– Always ensure that the belt webbing is properly positioned  according to the instructions provided by the manufacturer of the 
child seat.
– When travelling, do not allow children to distract you from traffic.
– Take breaks regularly during long trips. Take a break at least  every two hours.
WARNING
•
Never install a child seat facing backwards (or rear-facing) on the front 
passenger seat unless the front passenger airbag has been disabled. This 
could lead to a risk of potentially fatal injuries to the child! However, if it is 
necessary, in exceptional cases, to transport a child in the front passenger 
seat, the front passenger airbag must always be disabled  ⇒page 43, 
2)Not for all countries
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