Safety Belt
Refer to the following sections for important informationon how to use safety belts properly.
.Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone on page 2!26.
.How to Wear Safety Belts Properly on page 2!30.
.Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 2!39.
.Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH)on page 2!59.
Sensing System for Passenger
Airbag
The passenger sensing system, if equipped, will turn offthe right front passenger frontal airbag under certainconditions. The driver airbags, seat!mounted sideimpact airbags, if equipped, and roof!rail airbags arenot affected by this.
If the vehicle has one of the indicators pictured in thefollowing illustrations, then the vehicle has a passengersensing system for the right front passenger position.
The passenger airbag status indicator, if equipped, willbe visible on the overhead console when the vehicleis started.
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SeePassenger Sensing Systemon page 2!84forimportant information.
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Infants and Young Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! This includesinfants and all other children. Neither the distancetraveled nor the age and size of the traveler changesthe need, for everyone, to use safety restraints. In fact,the law in every state in the United States and in everyCanadian province says children up to some age mustbe restrained while in a vehicle.
{WARNING:
Children can be seriously injured or strangled if a
shoulder belt is wrapped around their neck and
the safety belt continues to tighten. Never leave
children unattended in a vehicle and never allow
children to play with the safety belts.
Airbags plus lap!shoulder belts offer protection foradults and older children, but not for young children andinfants. Neither the vehicle's safety belt system nor itsairbag system is designed for them. Every time infantsand young children ride in vehicles, they should havethe protection provided by appropriate child restraints.
Children who are not restrained properly can strikeother people, or can be thrown out of the vehicle.
{WARNING:
Never do this.
Never hold an infant or a child while riding in a
vehicle. Due to crash forces, an infant or a child
will become so heavy it is not possible to hold it
during a crash. For example, in a crash at only
40 km/h (25 mph), a 5.5 kg (12 lb) infant will
suddenly become a 110 kg (240 lb) force on a
person's arms. An infant should be secured in an
appropriate restraint.
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A label on your sun visor says,“Never put a rear-facingchild seat in the front.”This is because the risk to therear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
{WARNING:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates. This is because the
back of the rear-facing child restraint would be
very close to the inflating airbag. A child in a
forward-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates and the passenger seat
is in a forward position.
The vehicle may have a passenger sensing
system which is designed to turn off the right front
passenger frontal airbag under certain conditions.
(Continued)
WARNING: (Continued)
Even if the passenger sensing system,
if equipped, has turned off the right front
passenger frontal airbag, no system is fail-safe.
No one can guarantee that an airbag will not
deploy under some unusual circumstance, even
though it is turned off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear seat,
even if the airbag is off. If you secure a
forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat,
always move the front passenger seat as far back
as it will go. It is better to secure the child restraint
in a rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing Systemon page 2!84
for additional information.
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Securing a Child Restraint in the
Right Front Seat Position
This vehicle has airbags. A rear seat is a safer place tosecure a forward-facing child restraint. SeeWhere toPut the Restraint on page 2!57.
In addition, the vehicle may have a passenger sensingsystem which is designed to turn off the right frontpassenger frontal airbag under certain conditions. SeePassenger Sensing Systemon page 2!84andPassenger Airbag Status Indicatoron page 4!31formore information, including important safety information.
A label on the sun visor says,“Never put a rear-facingchild seat in the front.”This is because the risk to therear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
{WARNING:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates. This is because the
back of the rear-facing child restraint would be
very close to the inflating airbag.
(Continued)
WARNING: (Continued)
A child in a forward-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates and the passenger
seat is in a forward position.
The vehicle may have a passenger sensing
system which is designed to turn off the right front
passenger frontal airbag under certain conditions.
Even if the passenger sensing system,
if equipped, has turned off the right front
passenger frontal airbag, no system is fail-safe.
No one can guarantee that an airbag will not
deploy under some unusual circumstance, even
though it is turned off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear seat,
even if the airbag is off. If you secure a
forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat,
always move the front passenger seat as far back
as it will go. It is better to secure the child restraint
in a rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing Systemon page 2!84
for additional information.
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If the vehicle is equipped with the passenger sensingsystem, and when the passenger sensing system hasturned off the right front passenger frontal airbag, the offindicator in the passenger airbag status indicator shouldlight and stay lit when you start the vehicle. SeePassenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 4!31.
If a child restraint has been installed and the onindicator is lit, see“If the On Indicator is Lit for aChild Restraint”underPassenger Sensing Systemonpage 2!84for more information.
To remove the child restraint, unbuckle the vehiclesafety belt and let it return to the stowed position.
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the right front passenger.
.A roof-rail airbag for the driver and passengerdirectly behind the driver.
.A roof-rail airbag for the right front passenger andthe person seated directly behind that passenger.
The vehicle may have the following airbags:
.A seat!mounted side impact airbag for the driver.
.A seat!mounted side impact airbag for the rightfront passenger.
.If the vehicle has a third row seat, it will have athird row roof-rail airbag.
All of the airbags in the vehicle will have the wordAIRBAG embossed in the trim or on an attached labelnear the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear on themiddle part of the steering wheel for the driver and onthe instrument panel for the right front passenger.
With seat!mounted side impact airbags, the wordAIRBAG will appear on the side of the seatback closestto the door.
With roof-rail airbags, the word AIRBAG will appearalong the headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement the protectionprovided by safety belts. Even though today's airbagsare also designed to help reduce the risk of injury fromthe force of an inflating bag, all airbags must inflate veryquickly to do their job.
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{WARNING:
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
airbag when it inflates can be seriously injured or
killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder belts offer
protection for adults and older children, but not for
young children and infants. Neither the vehicle's
safety belt system nor its airbag system is
designed for them. Young children and infants
need the protection that a child restraint system
can provide. Always secure children properly in
your vehicle. To read how, seeOlder Childrenon
page 2!49orInfants and Young Childrenon
page 2!52.
There is an airbagreadiness light on theinstrument panelcluster, which showsthe airbag symbol.
The system checks the airbag electrical system formalfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electricalproblem. SeeAirbag Readiness Lighton page 4!30formore information.
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Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are designed to helpcontain the head and chest of occupants in theoutboard seating positions in the first, second, and thirdrows, if equipped with a third row seat. The rollovercapable roof-rail airbags are designed to help reducethe risk of full or partial ejection in rollover events,although no system can prevent all such ejections.
But airbags would not help in many types of collisions,primarily because the occupant's motion is not towardthose airbags. SeeWhen Should an Airbag Inflate?onpage 2!80for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything morethan a supplement to safety belts.
What Will You See After an Airbag
Inflates?
After the frontal airbags and seat-mounted side impactairbags inflate, they quickly deflate, so quickly thatsome people may not even realize an airbag inflated.Roof-rail airbags may still be at least partially inflated forsome time after they deploy. Some components of theairbag module may be hot for several minutes. Forlocation of the airbag modules, seeWhat Makes anAirbag Inflate? on page 2!81.
The parts of the airbag that come into contact with youmay be warm, but not too hot to touch. There may besome smoke and dust coming from the vents in thedeflated airbags. Airbag inflation does not prevent thedriver from seeing out of the windshield or being able tosteer the vehicle, nor does it prevent people fromleaving the vehicle.
{WARNING:
When an airbag inflates, there may be dust in the
air. This dust could cause breathing problems for
people with a history of asthma or other breathing
trouble. To avoid this, everyone in the vehicle
should get out as soon as it is safe to do so.
If you have breathing problems but cannot get out
of the vehicle after an airbag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or a door. If you
experience breathing problems following an airbag
deployment, you should seek medical attention.
The vehicle has a feature that may automatically unlockthe doors, turn on the interior lamps and hazard warningflashers, and shut off the fuel system after the airbagsinflate. You can lock the doors, turn off the interiorlamps and hazard warning flashers by using thecontrols for those features.
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Passenger Sensing System
If the vehicle has the passenger airbag status indicatorpictured in the following illustration, then the vehicle hasa passenger sensing system for the right frontpassenger position. The passenger airbag statusindicator, if equipped, is visible on the overhead consolewhen the vehicle is started.
In addition, if the vehicle has a passenger sensingsystem for the right front passenger position, thelabel on the vehicle's sun visors refers to“ADVANCED AIRBAGS”.
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The words ON and OFF, or the symbol for on and off,will be visible during the system check. If you are usingremote start, if equipped, to start the vehicle from adistance, you may not see the system check. When thesystem check is complete, either the word ON or OFF,or the symbol for on or off, will be visible. SeePassenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 4!31.
The passenger sensing system will turn off the rightfront passenger frontal airbag under certain conditions.The driver airbag, seat!mounted side impact airbags (ifequipped) and the roof-rail airbags are not affected bythe passenger sensing system.
The passenger sensing system works with sensors thatare part of the right front passenger seat and safetybelt. The sensors are designed to detect the presenceof a properly-seated occupant and determine if the rightfront passenger frontal airbag should be enabled (mayinflate) or not.
According to accident statistics, children are safer whenproperly secured in a rear seat in the correct childrestraint for their weight and size.
We recommend that children be secured in a rear seat,including: an infant or a child riding in a rear-facing childrestraint; a child riding in a forward-facing child seat; anolder child riding in a booster seat; and children, whoare large enough, using safety belts.
A label on the sun visor says,“Never put a rear-facingchild seat in the front.”This is because the risk to therear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
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