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OCCUPANT RESTRAINTS
Some of the most important safety features in your
vehicle are the restraint systems. These include the front
and rear seat belts for the driver and all passengers,
Advanced Front Airbags for both the driver and front
passenger, and side airbags (if equipped) for both the
driver and front passenger. If you will be carrying
children too small for adult-sized belts, your seat belts
can also be used to hold infant and child restraint
systems.
NOTE:The Advanced Front Airbags have a multistage
inflator design. This allows the airbag to have different
rates of inflation that are based on collision severity.
Please pay close attention to the information in this
section. It tells you how to use your restraint system
properly, to keep you and your passengers as safe as
possible.WARNING!
In a collision, you and your passengers can suffer
injuries, including fatalities, if you are not properly
buckled up. You can strike the interior of your
vehicle or other passengers, or you can be thrown out
of the vehicle. Always be sure you and others in your
vehicle are buckled up properly.
Buckle up even though you are an excellent driver, even
on short trips. Someone on the road may be a poor driver
and cause a collision that includes you. This can happen
far away from home or on your own street.
Research has shown that seat belts save lives, and that
they can reduce the seriousness of injuries in a collision.
Some of the worst injuries happen when people are
thrown from the vehicle. Seat belts reduce the possibility
of ejection and the risk of injury caused by striking the
6 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE
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occupant early in a collision. Pretensioners work for all
size occupants, including those in child restraints.
NOTE:These devices are not a substitute for proper seat
belt placement by the occupant. The seat belt must still be
worn snugly and positioned properly.
The pretensioners are triggered by the Occupant Re-
straint Control (ORC) Module. Like the airbags, the
pretensioners are a single use item. After a collision that
is severe enough to deploy the airbags and pretensioners,
they must be replaced.
Enhanced Seat Belt Use Reminder System
(BeltAlert)
If the driver’s seat belt has not been buckled within
60 seconds of starting the vehicle and if the vehicle speed
is greater than 5 mph (8 km/h), the Enhanced Seat Belt
Use Reminder System (BeltAlert) will alert the driver to
buckle the seat belt. The driver should also instruct all
other occupants to buckle their seat belts. Once the warning is triggered, BeltAlert
will continue to chime
and flash the Seat Belt Reminder Light for 96 seconds or
until the driver’s seat belt is buckled. BeltAlert will be
reactivated if the driver’s seat belt is unbuckled for more
than 10 seconds and the vehicle speed is greater than
5 mph (8 km/h).
BeltAlert can be enabled or disabled by your authorized
dealer or by following these steps:
NOTE: The following steps must occur within the first
60 seconds of the ignition switch being turned to the ON
or START position. Chrysler Group LLC does not recom-
mend deactivating BeltAlert.
1. Turn the ignition switch to the OFF position, and
buckle the driver’s seat belt.
2. Turn the ignition key to the ACC/ON position (do not
start the engine), and wait for the Seat Belt Reminder
Light to turn off.
2
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The ORC monitors the readiness of the electronic parts of
the system whenever the ignition switch is in the START
or ON positions. These include all of the items previously
mentioned.
based on the severity and type of collision, the side airbag
inflator on the crash side of the vehicle is triggered,
releasing a quantity of non-toxic gas. The inflating side
airbag exits through the seat seam into the space between
the occupant and the door. The side airbags fully inflate
in about 10 milliseconds. The side airbag moves at a very
high speed and with such a high force, that it could injure
you if you are not seated properly, or if items are
positioned in the area where the side airbag inflates. This
especially applies to children.
•TheKnee Impact Bolsters help protect the knees of
the driver and the front passenger, and position every-
one for the best interaction with the front airbag.
If a Deployment Occurs
The airbags are designed to deflate immediately after
deployment.
NOTE: Front and/or side airbags will not deploy in all
collisions. This does not mean something is wrong with
the airbag system.
If you do have a collision which deploys the airbags, any
or all of the following may occur:
•The nylon airbag material may sometimes cause abra-
sions and/or skin reddening to the driver and front
passenger as the airbags deploy and unfold. The
abrasions are similar to friction rope burns or those
you might get sliding along a carpet or gymnasium
floor. They are not caused by contact with chemicals.
They are not permanent and normally heal quickly.
However, if you have not healed significantly within a
few days, or if you have any blistering, see your doctor
immediately.
22 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE