2008 SMART FORTWO COUPE Owners Manual

Occupant safety
48
>> Safety. The smart vehicle is equipped with seat belts
and dual stage air bags to protect you in a
crash. However, children can be killed or se

riously injured by an inflating air bag. Indeed,
there is a stronger risk of serious death or
bodily injury when an air bag deploys on a
child positioned in a rear
facing child seat in
the passenger seat. Because this vehicle has
only two front seats and no backseat, it is lim

ited as are other two
seat vehicles, in the ex

tent to which it may restrain children
traveling in the passenger front seat. Many
states have laws against placing children of
certain ages in the front seat of a vehicle that
has both front and back seats. Those laws
make exceptions to permit children to be re

strained in the front seat of two seat vehicles.
Special instructions and warnings are provid

ed below about when and if you may restrain a
child in the passenger seat of the smart vehi

cle. Under certain circumstances, it is appropriate for the passenger air bag not
to operate when a child is restrained in a car
seat in the passenger seat, and this vehicle is
equipped with technology to accomplish this.
Please pay very close attention to the instruc

tions and warnings below, particularly as they
relate to children.
In this section you will learn the most
important facts about the restraint system
components of the vehicle.
•Seat belts (

page 50)
• Child restraints (

page 66)
Additional protection potential provided by
•S
upplemental R
estraint S
ystem (SRS) with
•Air bags (

page 54)
• Air bag control unit (with crash sensors)
• Emergency Tensioning Devices and seat
belt force limiters (

page 53)Air bag system components with
• Passenger front air bag off indicator lamp
(

page 64)
• Passenger seat with O
ccupant
C
lassification S
ystem (OCS) (

page 60)
Although independent systems, their
protective functions work in conjunction with
each other.
i
For information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and restraint
systems for infants and children, see
"Children in the vehicle" (

page 65).

Occupant safety
>> Safety.
49
The SRS system conducts a self
test when the
ignition is switched on and in regular inter

vals while the engine is running. This facili

tates detection of malfunctions. The SRS
indicator lamp= in the instrument cluster
comes on when the ignition is switched on and
goes out after approximately four seconds.
The SRS components are in operational readi

ness if the SRS indicator lamp= is not lit
when the engine is running.
A malfunction in the system has been detected
if the SRS indicator lamp=:
• fails to go out after approximately
4 seconds after the ignition was switched
on
•does not come on at all
• comes on after the engine was started or
while driving
G
Warning!
Modifications to or work improperly con

ducted on restraint systems (such as seat
belts and anchors, Emergency Tension

ing Devices, seat belt force limiters or
air bags) or their wiring, as well as tam

pering with interconnected electronic
systems, can lead to the restraint sys

tems no longer functioning as intended.
Air bags or Emergency Tensioning Devic

es, for example, could deploy inadvert

ently or fail to deploy in accidents in
which they otherwise should deploy
(although the deceleration threshold for
air bag deployment is exceeded). There

fore, never modify the restraint systems.
Do not tamper with electronic compo

nents or their software.
G
Warning!
In the event that the SRS indicator
lamp= comes on while driving or does
not come on at all, the SRS self
check has
detected a malfunction. For your safety,
we strongly recommend that you immedi

ately but safely pull the vehicle off of the
roadway and stop driving. Contact an au

thorized smart center immediately to
have the system checked; otherwise the
SRS may not deploy when needed in an ac

cident, which could result in serious or
fatal injury, or it might deploy unexpect

edly and unnecessarily which could also
result in injury.

Occupant safety
50
>> Safety.
Seat beltsThe use of seat belts and infant and child
restraint systems is required by law in all
50 states, the District of Columbia, the
U.S. territories and all Canadian provinces.
Even where this is not the case, all vehicle
occupants should have their seat belts
fastened whenever the vehicle is being oper

ated.
For more information, see "Fastening the seat
belts" (

page 98).
i
For information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and restraint
systems for infants and children, see
"Children in the vehicle" (

page 65).
In addition, improper repair work on the
SRS creates a risk of rendering the SRS
inoperative or causing unintended air
bag deployment. Work on the SRS must
therefore only be performed by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized smart
ce nte r . If it is n e ce ssa ry to m od ify a n a ir
bag system to accommodate a person with
disabilities, contact your local autho

rized smart center.
G
Warning!
Always fasten your seat belt before driv

ing. Always make sure all of your passen

gers are properly restrained.
Failure to wear and properly fasten and
position your seat belt greatly increases
your risk of injuries and their likely
severity in an accident. You and your
passenger should always wear seat belts.
If you are ever in an accident, your inju

ries can be considerably more severe
without your seat belt properly buckled.
Without your seat belt buckled, you are
much more likely to hit the interior of the
vehicle or be ejected from it. You can be
seriously injured or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of
injury or death is lessened if you are
properly wearing your seat belt. Air bags
can only protect you if you are properly
wearing your seat belt.

Occupant safety
>> Safety.
51
G
Warning!
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the
seat backrest in an excessively reclined
position as this can be dangerous. You
could slide under the seat belt in a colli

sion. If you slide under it, the belt would
apply force at the abdomen or neck,
causing serious or even fatal injuries.
The seat backrest and seat belt provide
the best restraint when the wearer is in a
position that is as upright as possible and
the belt is properly positioned on the
body.
G
Warning!
Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are seat belts available. Make
sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
correctly restrained with a separate seat
belt. Never use a seat belt for more than
one person at a time.
G
Warning!
Seat belts of a vehicle involved in an ac

cident must be inspected by smart. Only
then is it possible to determine whether
the seat belts were damaged or stressed
in the accident. Damaged or stressed
seat belts may not properly protect you
in a subsequent accident.
Only use seat belts which have been
approved by smart.
Do not make any modifications to the seat
belts. This can lead to unintended
activation of the Emergency Tensioning
Devices (ETDs) or to their failure to
activate when necessary.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this
may severely weaken them. In a crash,
they may not be able to provide adequate
protection.
Have all work carried out only by quali

fied technicians. Contact an authorized
smart center.

Occupant safety
52
>> Safety.G
Warning!
USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY
• Seat belts can only work when used
properly. Never wear seat belts in any
other way than as described in this
section, as that could result in serious
injuries in case of an accident.
• Each occupant should wear their seat
belt at all times, because seat belts
help reduce the likelihood of and
potential severity of injuries in
accidents, including rollovers. The
integrated restraint system includes
SRS (driver front air bag, passenger
front air bag, head
thorax air bags)
and Emergency Tensioning Devices
(ETDs) with seat belt force limiters.
The system is designed to enhance the
protection provided by secured seat

belts in certain frontal and side im

pacts.
• Never wear the shoulder belt under
your arm, against your neck or off your
shoulder. Doing so may cause your
body to move too far forward in a fron

tal crash, which would increase the
chance of head and neck injuries. The
seat belt would also apply too much
force to the ribs or abdomen, which
could severely injure internal organs
such as your liver or spleen.
• Never wear seat belts over rigid or
breakable objects in or on your cloth

ing, such as eyeglasses, pens, keys,
etc., as these might cause injuries.
• Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips and not across the abdo

men. If the lap seat belt is positioned
across your abdomen, it could cause
serious injuries in a crash.
• Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at time. Do not fasten a single
seat belt around a person and another
person or other objects.
• Seat belts should not be worn twisted.
In a crash, you would not have the full
width of the seat belt to manage impact
forces. The twisted seat belt against
your body could cause injuries.

Occupant safety
>> Safety.
53 Emergency Tensioning Devices
(ETDs) and seat belt force limiters
The seat belts are equipped with Emergency
Tensioning Devices and seat belt force limit

ers.
Emergency Tensioning Devices are designed
to activate in the following cases:
• in frontal or rear
end impacts exceeding
the system deployment threshold
• if the restraint systems are operational and
functioning correctly
• in collisions with high vehicle deceleration/
acceleration in the longitudinal or lateral
direction, e.g. a head
on collision or a side
collision
• on passenger side when the seat is occu

pied and the seat belt is fastened
• in collisions in lateral direction on the side
of the vehicle that is struck
• independently of the front air bagsWhen activated, Emergency Tensioning Devic

es remove slack from the seat belts in such a
way that the seat belts fit more snugly against
the body. Seat belt force limiters, when acti

vated, reduce the force exerted by the seat
belts on occupants during a crash.
• Pregnant women should also always use
a lap
shoulder belt. The lap belt
portion should be positioned as low as
possible on the hips to avoid any
possible pressure on the abdomen.
• Never place your feet on the instru

ment panel, dashboard or on the seat.
Always keep both feet on the floor in
front of the seat.
• When using a seat belt to secure infant
or toddler restraints or children in
booster seats, always follow the child
seat manufacturer’s instructions.

Occupant safety
54
>> Safety. When the emergency tensioning device is
triggered, the SRS indicator lamp= in the
instrument cluster illuminates, see "SRS indi

cator lamp" (

page 246).The belt force limiter is designed to operate
in unison with the front air bag, which absorbs
a portion of the seat belt's decelerating forc

es, distributing the load over a larger area.
In the event of a head
on or rear
end colli

sion, the emergency tensioning device is ac

tivated if the vehicle is decelerated or
accelerated sufficiently in the longitudinal di

rection at the start of impact with the ignition
switched on.
Air bagsAir bags can reduce the severity of injuries in
serious collisions, e.g. in a head
on collision
or a side impact.
G
Warning!
Once they have been triggered, Emer

gency Tensioning Devices will no longer
function properly and must be replaced.
smart recommends that you visit a quali

fied workshop to have this done. In par

ticular, work relevant to safety or on
safety
related systems must be carried
out at a qualified specialist workshop.
Comply with safety regulations when
disposing of Emergency Tensioning De

vices. These regulations are available at
any smart center.
G
Warning!
Air bags are designed to reduce the
potential of injury in certain frontal
impacts (front air bags), or side impacts
(head
thorax air bags) which may cause
significant injuries. However, no system
available today can completely eliminate
injuries and fatalities.

Occupant safety
>> Safety.
55
The deployment of the air bags tempo

rarily releases a small amount of dust
from the air bags. This dust is neither in

jurious to your health, nor does it indi

cate a fire in the vehicle. The dust might
cause some temporary breathing diffi

culty for people with asthma or other
breathing trouble. To avoid this, you may
wish to get out of the vehicle as soon as it
is sa f e to do so. If you h a ve an y bre a th in g
difficulty but cannot get out of the vehi

cle after the air bag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or door.
G
Warning!
To reduce the risk of injury when the
front air bags inflate, it is very important
for the driver and passenger to always be
in a properly seated position and to wear
their respective seat belt.
For maximum protection in the event of a
collision always be in normal seated posi

tion with your back against the backrest.
Fasten your seat belt and ensure it is
properly positioned on your body
(
page 98).
Since the air bag inflates with consider

able speed and force, a proper seating
and hands on steering wheel position will
help to keep you at a safe distance from
the air bag.
Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi

tion or too close to the air bag can be
seriously injured or killed by an air bag
as it inflates extremely quickly and with
great force:
• Sit properly belted in a position that is
as upright as possible with your back
against the seat backrest.
• Adjust the driver’s seat as far as pos

sible rearward, still permitting proper
operation of vehicle controls. The dis

tance from the center of the driver’s
breastbone to the center of the air bag
cover on the steering wheel must be at
least 10 inches (25 cm) or more. You
should be able to accomplish this by
adjustments to the seat. If you have any
problems, please contact an autho

rized smart center.
• Do no t l e an yo ur he a d or che st cl ose to
the steering wheel or dashboard.