2009.5 Citroen DS3 Owner's Manual

143Safety
Lateral airbags
System which protects the driver and front passenger in the event of a serious side impact in order to limit the risk of injury to the chest. Each lateral airbag is built into the seat backrest frame, door side.
Activation Impact detection zones
A. Front impact zone. B. Side impact zone.
The lateral airbags are triggered unilaterally in the event of a serious side impact applied to all or par t of the side impact zone B , perpendicular to the longitudinal centreline of the vehicle on a horizontal plane and directed from the outside towards the inside of the vehicle. The lateral airbag inflates between the front
occupant of the vehicle and the corresponding door trim panel.

Curtain airbags
System which protects the driver and passengers (with the exception of the rear centre passenger) in the event of a serious side impact in order to limit the risk of injury to the side of the head. Each cur tain airbag is built into the pillars and the upper passenger compar tment area.
Activation
The cur tain airbag is triggered at the same time as the corresponding lateral airbag in the event of a serious side impact applied to all or par t of the side impact zone B , perpendicular to the longitudinal centreline of the vehicle on a horizontal plane and directed from the outside towards the inside of the vehicle. The cur tain airbag inflates between the front or rear occupant of the vehicle and the windows.
Operating fault
In the event of a minor impact or bump on the side of the vehicle or if the vehicle rolls over, the airbag may not be triggered. In the event of a rear or front collision, the airbag is not triggered.
If this warning lamp comes on on the instrument panel, accompanied by an audible signal and a message on the multifunction screen, contact a CITROËN dealer to have the system checked. The
airbags may no longer be triggered in the event of a serious impact.

145Safety
For the airbags to be fully effective, observe the following safety rules:
Front airbags
Do not drive holding the steering wheel by its spokes or resting your hands on the centre par t of the wheel. Passengers must not place their feet on the dashboard. If possible, do not smoke as deployment of the airbags can cause burns or the risk of injury from a cigarette or pipe. Never remove or pierce the steering wheel or hit it violently.
Lateral airbags
Use only approved covers on the seats. These will not hinder inflation of the lateral airbags. Consult a CITROËN dealer. Do not fix or attach anything to the seat backs (clothing...). This could cause injury to the chest or arms if the lateral airbag is triggered. Do not sit with the upper par t of the body any nearer to the door than necessary.
Curtain airbags
Do not fix or attach anything to the roof. This could cause injury to the head if the cur tain airbag is triggered. Do not remove the grab handles installed on the roof, they play a par t in securing the cur tain airbags.
Sit in a normal upright position. Wear a correctly adjusted seat belt. Do not leave anything between the occupants and the airbags (a child, pet, object...). This could hamper the operation of the airbags or injure the occupants. After an accident or if the vehicle has been stolen or broken into, have the airbag systems checked. All work on the airbag system is strictly forbidden unless it is carried out by qualified personnel of the CITROËN dealer network. Even if all of the precautions mentioned are obser ved, a risk of injury or of minor burns to the head, chest or arms when an airbag is triggered cannot be ruled out.
The bag inflates almost instantly (within a few milliseconds) then deflates within the same time discharging the hot gas via openings
provided for this purpose.

Parking brake
Applying
 Pull the parking brake lever fully up to immobilise your vehicle.
Releasing
 Pull the parking brake lever gently, press the release button then lower the lever fully.
When parking on a slope, direct your wheels against the pavement, apply the parking brake and engage a gear.
When the vehicle is being driven, if this warning lamp and the STOP warning lamp come on, accompanied by an
audible signal and a message on the multifunction screen, this indicates that the parking brake is still on or has not been properly released.

149Driving
6-speed manual gearbox
 Raise the ring under the knob and push the gear lever to the left then for wards.
Engaging reverse gear
As a safety precaution and to facilitate star ting of the engine: - always select neutral, - press the clutch pedal.
Only engage reverse gear when the vehicle is stationary with the engine at idle.

Gear change indicator *
Operation
The system inter venes only when driving economically.
Depending on the driving situation and your vehicle's equipment, the system may advise you to skip one or more gears. You can follow this instruction without engaging the intermediate gears. The gear engagement recommendations must not be considered compulsory. In fact, the configuration of the road, the amount of traffic and safety remain determining factors when choosing the best gear. Therefore, the driver remains responsible for deciding whether or not to follow the advice given by the system. This function cannot be deactivated.
- The system may suggest that you engage a higher gear, if appropriate.
The information appears in the form of an arrow on the instrument panel display. Depending on your vehicle's equipment, this arrow may be accompanied by the recommended gear.
In the case of driving which makes par ticular demands on the per formance of the engine (firm pressure on the accelerator pedal, for example, when over taking...), the system will not recommend a gear change. The system never suggests: - engaging first gear, - engaging reverse gear, - engaging a lower gear.
* According to engine.
Example:
- You are in third gear.
- You press the accelerator pedal moderately.

151Driving
Four-speed automatic gearbox which offers a choice between the comfor t of fully automatic operation, enhanced by spor t and snow programmes, or manual gear changing. Therefore, four driving modes are offered:
- automatic operation for electronic management of the gears by the gearbox, - spor t programme for a more dynamic style of driving, - snow programme to improve driving when traction is poor, - manual operation for sequential changing of the gears by the driver.
Automatic gearbox
1. Gear lever. 2. Button "S" (spor t) . 3. Button "" (snow).
Gear selection gate
P. Park. - Immobilisation of the vehicle, parking brake on or off. - Star ting the engine. R. Reverse. - Reversing manoeuvres, vehicle stationary,
engine at idle. N. Neutral. - Immobilisation of the vehicle, parking brake on.
- Star ting the engine. D. Automatic operation. M. +/- Manual operation with sequential
changing of the four gears. Push forwards to change up through the gears. or  Pull backwards to change down through the gears.
Gear lever

When you move the lever in the gate to select a position, the corresponding indicator is displayed on the instrument panel. P. Park R. Reverse N. Neutral D. Drive (Automatic driving) S. Spor t programme  . Snow programme 1, 2, 3, 4. Gear engaged during manual operation -. Invalid value during manual operation
Displays on the instrument panel
Foot on brake
 Press the brake pedal when this indicator lamp is displayed on the instrument panel (e.g.: star ting the engine).
Moving off
If position N is engaged inadver tently while driving, allow the engine to return to idle then engage position D to accelerate.
When the engine is running at idle, with the brakes released, if position R , D or
M is selected, the vehicle moves even without the accelerator being pressed. When the engine is running, never leave children in the vehicle without super vision. When carrying out maintenance with the engine running, apply the parking brake and select position P . PP
 Apply the parking brake.  Select position P or N .  Star t the engine. If this procedure is not followed, an audible signal is heard, accompanied by a message on the multifunction screen.  With the engine running, press the brake pedal.  Release the parking brake.  Select position R , D or M ,  Gradually release the brake pedal. The vehicle moves off immediately.