6. Before having a child sit in the child
restraint system, move it back and forth
and right and left to check if it is firmly
secured. Sometimes a child restraint can
be more firmly secured by pushing it down
into the seat cushion and then tightening
the seatbelt.
7. Pull at the shoulder portion of the belt
to confirm that it cannot be pulled out (ALR
properly functioning).Sedan
Station wagon
8. If the child restraint system requires a
top tether, latch the hook onto the top
tether anchor and tighten the top tether.
Refer to the “Top tether anchorages ”for additional instructions.
9. To remove the child restraint system,
press the release button on the seatbelt
buckle and allow the belt to retract
completely. The belt will return to the
ELR mode. NOTE
When the child restraint system is no
longer in use, remove it and restore the
ELR function of the retractor. That
function is restored by allowing the
seatbelt to retract fully.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-33
– CONTINUED –
1-34Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
&Installing a booster seat
WARNING
. Child restraint systems and seat-
belts can become hot in a vehicle
that has been closed up in sunny
weather; they could burn a small
child. Check the child restraint
system before you place a child
in it.
. Do not leave an unsecured child
restraint system in your vehicle.
Unsecured child restraint sys-
tems can be thrown around in-
side of the vehicle in a sudden
stop, turn or accident; they can
strike and injure vehicle occu-
pants as well as result in serious
injuries or death to the child.
CAUTION
When you install a child restraint
system, follow the manufacturer ’s
instructions supplied with it. After
installing the child restraint system,
check to ensure that it is held
securely in position. If it is not held
tight and secure, the danger of your
child suffering personal injury in the
event of an accident may be in-creased.
1. Place the booster seat in the rear
seating position and sit the child on it. The
child should sit well back on the boosterseat.
2. Run the lap and shoulder belt through
or around the booster seat and the child following the instructions provided by its
manufacturer.
3. Insert the tongue plate into the buckle
until you hear a click. Take care not to
twist the seatbelt.
Make sure the shoulder belt is positioned
across the center of child
’s shoulder and
that the lap belt is positioned as low as
possible on the child ’s hips.
4. To remove the booster seat, press the
release button on the seatbelt buckle and
allow the belt to retract.
WARNING
. Never use a belt that is twisted or
reversed. In an accident, this can
increase the risk or severity of
injury to the child.
.Never place the shoulder belt
under the child ’s arm or behind
the child ’s back. If an accident
occurs, this can increase the risk
or severity of injury to the child.
. The seatbelt should fit snugly in
order to provide full restraint.
Loose fitting belts are not as
effective in preventing or redu-
cing injury.
. Placethelapbeltaslowas
possible on the child ’s hips. A
high-positioned lap belt will in-
crease the risk of sliding under
the lap belt and of the lap belt
sliding up over the abdomen, and
both can result in serious inter-
nal injury or death.
. Make sure the shoulder belt is
positioned across the center ofchild ’s shoulder. Placing the
shoulder belt over the neck may
result in neck injury during sud-
den braking or in a collision. &
Installation of child restraint
systems by use of lower and
tether anchorages (LATCH)
WARNING
. Child restraint systems and seat-
belts can become hot in a vehicle
that has been closed up in sunny
weather; they could burn a small
child. Check the child restraint
system before you place a child
in it.
. Do not leave an unsecured child
restraint system in your vehicle.
Unsecured child restraint sys-
tems can be thrown around in-
side of the vehicle in a sudden
stop, turn or accident; they can
strike and injure vehicle occu-
pants as well as result in serious
injuries or death to the child.
CAUTION
When you install a child restraint
system, follow the manufacturer ’s
instructions supplied with it. After
installing the child restraint system,
check to ensure that it is held
securely in position. If it is not held tight and secure, the danger of your
child suffering personal injury in the
event of an accident may be in-creased.
Some types of child restraint systems can
be installed on the rear seat of your
vehicle without use of the seatbelts. Such
child restraint systems are secured to the
dedicated anchorages provided on the
vehicle body.
The lower and tether anchorages are
sometimes referred to as the LATCH
system ( Lower Anchors and Tethers for
CH ildren).
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags 1-35
– CONTINUED –
rear seat seatbacks. These marks indicate
the positions of the lower anchorages(bars).
Each lower anchorage is located behind
the cover of seatback bottom.
CAUTION
When you install a child restraint
system, follow the manufacturer ’s
instructions supplied with it. After
installing the child restraint system,
check to ensure that it is held
securely in position. If it is not held
tight and secure, the danger of your
child suffering personal injury in the
event of an accident may be in- creased.
Peel off the anchorage cover from the
selected side of the rear seatback to
expose the anchorages (bars) to be used
for installation of the child restraint system.
1. While following the instructions sup-
plied by the child restraint system manu-
facturer, connect the lower hooks onto the
lower anchorages located at “
”marks on
the bottom of the rear seatback. When the
hooks are connected, make sure the
adjacent seatbelts are not caught.
2. If your child restraint system is of a
flexible attachment type (which uses
tether belts to connect the child restraint
system properly to the lower anchorages),
while pushing the child restraint into the
seat cushion, pull both left and right lower
tether belts up to secure the child restraint
system firmly by taking up the slack in thebelt.
3. Connect the top tether hook to the
tether anchorage and firmly tighten the
tether. For information on how to set the
top tether, read the following “Top tether
anchorages ”.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-37
– CONTINUED –
1-38Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
4. Before seating a child in the child
restraint system, try to move seat back
and forth and left and right to verify that it
is held securely in position.
5. To remove the child restraint system,
follow the reverse procedures of installa-tion.
If you have any question concerning this
type of child restraint system, ask your
SUBARU dealer. &Top tether anchorages
Your vehicle is equipped with three top
tether anchorages so that a child restraint
system having a top tether can be
installed in the rear seat. When installing
a child restraint system using top tether,
proceed as follows, while observing the instructions by the child restraint system
manufacturer.
Since a top tether can provide additional
stability by offering another connection
between a child restraint system and the
vehicle, we recommend that you use a top
tether whenever one is required or avail-able. !
Tether anchorage location
! Sedan
Three tether anchorages are installed on
the rear shelf behind the rear seat head
restraint. Open the cover flap to use eachanchorage. !
Station wagon
Three tether anchorages, i.e., ones for the
right, center and left positions, are already
installed on the rear edge of the roof.
Open the cover flap to use each ancho- rage.
!To hook the top tether
! Sedan
1. Remove the head restraint at the
seating position where the child seat has
been installed with the seatbelt or lower
anchorages; lift up the head restraint while
pressing the release button.
Store the head restraint in the trunk. Avoid
placing the head restraint in the passen-
ger compartment to prevent it from being
thrown around in the passenger compart-
ment in a sudden stop or a sharp turn.
2. Open the cover flaps to use the anchorages.
3. Fasten the top tether hook of the child
restraint system to the appropriate upperanchorage. 4. Tighten the top tether securely.
CAUTION
Do not route the top tether over the
head restraint. It may happen that
the top tether cannot be fastened
tightly.
When the child restraint system is to
be secured using the top tether,
pass the top tether under the head
restraint between the head restraint
stay posts. If the top tether still
cannot be fastened tightly, remove
the head restraint.
! Station wagon
1. Remove the head restraint at the Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-39
– CONTINUED –
1-40Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
seating position where the child restraint
system has been installed with the seat-
belt or lower anchorages; lift up the head
restraint while pressing the release button.
Store the head restraint in the cargo area.
Avoid placing the head restraint in the
passenger compartment to prevent it from
being thrown around in the passenger
compartment in a sudden stop or a sharpturn.
2. Open the cover flaps to use the anchorages.
3. Fasten the top tether hook of the child
restraint system to the appropriate upperanchorage.
4. Tighten the top tether securely.
CAUTION
Always remove the head restraint
when mounting a child restraint
system with a top tether. Otherwise,
it may happen that the top tether
cannot be fastened tightly. *SRS airbag (Supplemental
Restraint System airbag)
*SRS: This stands for supplemental re-
straint system. This name is used be-
cause the airbag system supplements thevehicle
’s seatbelts.
Your vehicle is equipped with a crash
sensing and diagnostic module, which will
record the use of the seatbelt by the front
passenger when any of the SRS frontal,
side and curtain airbags deploys.
& Vehicle with SRS airbags and
lap/shoulder restraints for
driver, front passenger, and
window-side rear passengers
Your vehicle is equipped with a supple-
mental restraint system in addition to a
lap/shoulder belt at each front seating
position and each rear window-side seat-
ing positions. The supplemental restraint
system (SRS) consists of six airbags.
The configurations are as follows: . Driver ’s and front passenger ’s frontal
airbags . Driver ’s and front passenger ’s side
airbags. Curtain airbags (for driver, front pas-
senger, and window-side rear passen-
1-42Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
WARNING
. Put children aged 12 and under in
the rear seat properly restrained
at all times. The SRS airbag
deploys with considerable speed
and force and can injure or even
kill children, especially if they are
12 years of age and under and
are not restrained or improperly
restrained. Because children are
lighter and weaker than adults,
their risk of being injured from
deployment is greater.
Consequently, we strongly re-
commend that ALL children (in-
cluding those in child seats and
those that have outgrown child restraint devices) sit in the REAR
seat properly restrained at all
times in a child restraint device
or in a seatbelt, whichever is
appropriate for the child
’s age,
height and weight.
Secure ALL types of child re-
straint devices (including for-
ward facing child seats) in the
REAR seats at all times.
According to accident statistics,
children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seat-
ing positions.
For instructions and precautions
concerning the child restraint
system, refer to the “Child re-
straint systems ”section in this
chapter.
. NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD
FACING CHILD SEAT IN THE
FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS
SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO
THE CHILD BY PLACING THECHILD ’S HEAD TOO CLOSE TO
THE SRS AIRBAG.
. Never allow a child to stand up,
or to kneel on the front passen-ger ’s seat, or never hold a child
on your lap or in your arms. The SRS airbag deploys with consid-
erable force and can injure or
even kill the child.
CAUTION
. When the SRS airbag deploys,
some smoke will be released.
This smoke could cause breath-
ing problems for people with a
history of asthma or other
breathing trouble. If you or your
passengers have breathing pro-
blems after SRS airbag deploys,
get fresh air promptly.
. A deploying SRS airbag releases
hot gas. Occupants could get
burned if they come into direct
contact with the hot gas.
NOTE
When you sell your vehicle, we urge
you to explain to the buyer that it is
equipped with SRS airbags by alerting
him or her to the applicable section in
this Owner ’s Manual.