2009 Acura RL Owner's Manual

Locking the doors reduces the
chance of someone being thrown out
of the vehicle during a crash, and it
helps prevent passengers f rom
accidentally opening a door and
f alling out.
Locking the doors also helps prevent
an outsider f rom unexpectedly
opening a door when you come to a
stop.
See page f or how to lock the
doors.
When the trunk is not tightly closed,
the ‘‘TRUNK OPEN’’ indicator will
come on. When one or more doors and the
trunk lid are not tightly closed, the
corresponding indicator f or each
condition and the ‘‘DOOR & TRUNK
OPEN’’ indicator will come on. 153
Protecting A dults and Teens
14
2009 RL

See page f or how to adjust the
f ront seats.
If you sit too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard, you can be
seriously injured by an inf lating f ront
airbag, or by striking the steering
wheel or dashboard.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport
Canada recommend that drivers
allow at least 10 inches (25 cm)
between the center of the steering
wheel and the chest. In addition to
adjusting the seat, you can adjust the
steering wheel up and down, and in
and out (see page ).
If you cannot get f ar enough away
f rom the steering wheel and still
reach the controls, we recommend
that you investigate whether some
type of adaptive equipment may help.
Adjust the driver’s seat as far to the
rear as possible while allowing you to
maintain f ull control of the vehicle.
Have a f ront passenger adjust their
seat as far to the rear as possible.
148
156
Protecting A dults and Teens
Adjust the Front Seats
2.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
15
Sitting too close to a front
airbag can result in serious
injury or death if the front
airbags inflate.
Always sit as far back from the
front airbags as possible.
2009 RL

Adjust the driver’s head restraint so
the center of the back of your head
rests against the center of the
restraint.
Have passengers with adjustable
head restraints adjust their restraints
properly as well. Taller persons
should adjust their restraint as high
as possible.
Reclining a seat-back so that the
shoulder part of the belt no longer
rests against the occupant’s chest
reduces the protective capability of
the belt. It also increases the chance
of sliding under the belt in a crash
and being seriously injured. The
farther a seat-back is reclined, the
greater the risk of injury.
See page f or how to adjust the
seat-backs.
Adjust the driver’s seat-back to a
comf ortable, upright position,
leaving ample space between your
chest and the airbag cover in the
center of the steering wheel.
Passengers with adjustable seat-
backs should also adjust their seat-
back to a comf ortable, upright
position.
156
Protecting A dults and Teens
A djust the Head Restraints
Adjust the Seat-Backs 4.
3.
16
Reclining the seat-back too far
can result in serious injury or
death in a crash.
Adjust the seat-back to an
upright position, and sit well
back in the seat.
2009 RL

CONT INUED
Position the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across your hips,
then pull up on the shoulder part of
the belt so the lap part f its snugly.
This lets your strong pelvic bones
take the force of a crash and reduces
the chance of internal injuries.
If necessary, pull up on the belt again
to remove any slack, then check that
the belt rests across the center of
your chest and over your shoulder.
Insert the latch plate into the buckle,
then tug on the belt to make sure the
belt is securely latched. Check that
the belt is not twisted, because a
twisted belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash.
Properly adjusted head restraints
will help protect occupants f rom
whiplash and other crash injuries.
See page f or how to adjust the
head restraints and how the driver’s
and f ront passenger’s active head
restraints work. 157
Protecting A dults and Teens
Fasten and Position the Seat
Belts
5.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
17
Improperly positioning head
restraints reduces their
effectiveness and you can be
seriously injured in a crash.
Make sure head restraints are
in place and positioned properly
before driving.
2009 RL

This could cause
very serious injuries in a crash.
If a seat belt does not seem to work
properly, it may not protect the
occupant in a crash.
Using a seat
belt that is not working properly can
result in serious injury or death.
Have your dealer check the belt as
soon as possible.
See page f or additional
inf ormation about your seat belts
and how to take care of them.
The front seats have adjustable seat
belt anchors. To adjust the height of
an anchor, press and hold the release
buttons, and slide the anchor up or
down as needed (it has f our
positions).
If the seat belt touches or crosses
your neck, or if it crosses your arm
instead of your shoulder, you need to
adjust the seat belt anchor height.
This spreads the f orces of a crash
over the strongest bones in your
upper body.
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Protecting A dults and Teens
Never place t he shoulder port ion of alap/shoulder belt under your arm orbehind your back.
No one should sit in a seat wit h aninoperat ive seat belt .
18
RELEASE
BUTTON
Improperly positioning the seat
belts can cause serious injury
or death in a crash.
Make sure all seat belts are
properly positioned before
driving.
2009 RL

If you are pregnant, the best way to
protect yourself and your unborn
child when driving or riding in a
vehicle is to always wear a seat belt,
and keep the lap part of the belt as
low as possible across the hips.
In addition, an occupant who is out of
position in the f ront seat can be
seriously or f atally injured in a crash
by striking interior parts of the
vehicle or being struck by an
inflating front airbag.
After all occupants have adjusted
their seats and head restraints, and
put on their seat belts, it is very
important that they continue to sit
upright, well back in their seats, with
their feet on the floor, until the
vehicle is parked and the engine is
off.
Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward or sideways,
or puts one or both f eet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is
greatly increased.
CONT INUED
Protecting A dults and Teens
Advice f or Pregnant Women
Maintain a Proper Sitting
Position
6.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
19
Sitting improperly or out of
position can result in serious
injury or death in a crash.
Always sit upright, well back in
the seat, with your feet on the
floor.
2009 RL

If your
hands or arms are close to an
airbag cover, they could be injured
if the airbag inf lates.
Objects on
the covers marked ‘‘SRS AIRBAG’’
could interf ere with the proper
operation of the airbags or be
propelled inside the vehicle and
hurt someone if the airbags inf late.
If a side airbag or a
side curtain airbag inf lates, a cup
holder or other hard object
attached on or near the door could
be propelled inside the vehicle and
hurt someone.
If they do, they
could be very seriously injured in a
crash.
Devices intended to improve
occupant comf ort or reposition the
shoulder part of a seat belt can
reduce the protective capability of
thebeltandincreasethechanceof
serious injury in a crash.
Carrying hard or sharp
objects on your lap, or driving with
a pipe or other sharp object in
your mouth, can result in injuries
if your f ront airbag inf lates.
When driving, remember to sit
upright and adjust the seat as f ar
back as possible while allowing f ull
control of the vehicle. When riding
as a f ront passenger, adjust the seat
as far back as possible.
This will reduce the risk of injuries
to both you and your unborn child
that can be caused by a crash or an
inflating front airbag.
Each time you have a checkup, ask
your doctor if it’s okay f or you to
drive.
Protecting A dults and Teens
K eep your hands and arms away
f rom t he airbag covers.
Do not at t ach or place object s onthe f ront airbag covers.
Do not at t ach hard object s on ornear a door.
T wo people should never use t he
same seat belt .
Do not put any accessories on seatbelts.
Do not place hard or sharp object sbet ween yourself and a f rontairbag.Additional Saf ety Precautions
20
2009 RL

CONT INUED
Your seat belt system includes lap/
shoulder belts in all seating positions.
The f ront seat belts are also
equipped with automatic seat belt
tensioners and, on models with
collision mitigation brake system
(CMBS), seat belt e-pretensioners.The seat belt system
includes an indicator on the
instrument panel and a beeper to
remind you and your passengers to
f asten your seat belts.
This system monitors the f ront seat
belts. If you turn the ignition switch
to the ON (II) position bef ore your
seat belt is f astened, the beeper will
sound and the indicator will f lash. If
your seat belt is not f astened bef ore
the beeper stops, the indicator will
stop f lashing but remain on.
If a f ront passenger does not f asten
their seat belt, the indicator will
come on about 6 seconds af ter the
ignition switch is turned to the ON
(II) position. You will also see a ‘‘FASTEN SEAT
BELT’’ or ‘‘FASTEN PASSENGER
SEAT BELT’’ message on the multi-
inf ormation display (see page ).
When no one is sitting in the f ront
passenger’s seat, or a child or small
adult is riding there, the indicator
should not come on and the beeper
should not sound.
This system uses the same sensors
as the front airbags to monitor
whether the f ront seat belts are
latched or unlatched, and how much
weight is on the f ront passenger’s
seat (see pages and ). If either the driver or a f ront
passenger does not f asten their seat
belt while driving, the beeper will
sound and the indicator will f lash
again at regular intervals.
3132 79
Seat Belt System Components
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
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2009 RL