Page 26 of 318

Folding Seatback
{CAUTION
If you fold the seatback forward to
carry longer objects, such as skis,
be sure any such cargo is not near
an airbag. In a crash, an inflating
airbag might force that object
toward a person. This could
cause severe injury or even death.
Secure objects away from the area
in which an airbag would inflate.
For more information, seeWhere
Are the Airbags? on page 2-24 .
{CAUTION
Things you put on this seatback
can strike and injure people in a
sudden stop or turn, or in a crash.
Remove or secure all items
before driving.
On vehicles with this feature, the
seatback folds down to allow for
more cargo space. When the area
is not being used for more cargo
space or as a temporary table, put
the seatback in the locked, upright
position. Only adjust the seat when
the vehicle is not moving.
To fold the seatback down:
1. Move the seat rearward.
2. Lower the head restraint to the lowest position and make sure
the seatback is at the most
upright position and locked. 3. Pull up on one of the levers
located on either side of the back
of the passenger seatback.
4. Fold the seatback down.
2-6 Seats and Restraints
Page 27 of 318

To raise the seatback:
1. Pull up on one of the leverslocated on either side of the back
of the passenger’s seatback.
2. Pull the seatback up and push it back to lock it into place. Make
sure the safety belt is not twisted
or caught in the seatback.
3. Push and pull the top of the seatback to be sure it is
locked into position.
4. Use the reclining front seatback lever to adjust the seatback to a
comfortable position.Rear Seats
You can fold either side of the
seatback down. The rear right side
seatback can also be used as a
temporary table while the vehicle
is stopped.
{CAUTION
A rear seatback folded forward,
or any other object contacting or
pressing the front seatback may
affect the proper functioning of
the passenger sensing system.
See Passenger Sensing System
on page 2-29.
To fold either seatback down:
1. Move the front seat forward and the seatback to the upright
position.
2. Move the headrests all the way down. 3. Pull up on the lock release knob,
located on the top outboard side
of the seatback.
Notice: Folding a rear seat with
the safety belts still fastened may
cause damage to the seat or the
safety belts. Always unbuckle the
safety belts and return them to
their normal stowed position
before folding a rear seat.
4. Fold the seatback down.
Seats and Restraints 2-7
Page 28 of 318

To raise the seatback:
1. Pull the seatback up andpush it back to lock it into place.
The safety belts should not be
twisted or caught in the seatback.
{CAUTION
A safety belt that is improperly
routed, not properly attached,
or twisted will not provide the
protection needed in a crash.
The person wearing the belt could
be seriously injured. After raising
the rear seatback, always check
to be sure that the safety belts are
properly routed and attached, and
are not twisted.
2. Push and pull the top of the seatback to check that it is locked
into position.
{CAUTION
If either seatback is not locked, it
could move forward in a sudden
stop or crash. That could cause
injury to the person sitting there.
Always push and pull on the
seatbacks to be sure they are
locked.
Safety Belts
This section of the manual describes
how to use safety belts properly.
It also describes some things not
to do with safety belts.
{CAUTION
Do not let anyone ride where
a safety belt cannot be worn
properly. In a crash, if you or your
passenger(s) are not wearing
safety belts, the injuries can be
much worse. You can hit things
inside the vehicle harder or be
ejected from the vehicle. You and
your passenger(s) can be seriously
injured or killed. In the same crash,
you might not be, if you are
buckled up. Always fasten your
safety belt, and check that your
passenger(s) are restrained
properly too.
2-8 Seats and Restraints
Page 33 of 318
If you slid under it, the belt would
apply force on your abdomen.
This could cause serious or even
fatal injuries. The shoulder belt
should go over the shoulder and
across the chest. These parts of
the body are best able to take belt
restraining forces.
The shoulder belt locks if there is a
sudden stop or crash.Q:What is wrong with this?
A:The shoulder belt is too loose.
It will not give as much
protection this way.
{CAUTION
You can be seriously hurt if your
shoulder belt is too loose. In a
crash, you would move forward
too much, which could increase
injury. The shoulder belt should fit
snugly against your body.
Seats and Restraints 2-13
Page 38 of 318

Lap-Shoulder Belt
All seating positions in the vehicle
have a lap-shoulder belt.
The following instructions explain
how to wear a lap-shoulder belt
properly.
1. Adjust the seat so you can sit upstraight. To see how, see “Seats”
in the Index.
2. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Do not let
it get twisted. The lap-shoulder belt may lock if
you pull the belt across you very
quickly. If this happens, let the
belt go back slightly to unlock it.
Then pull the belt across you
more slowly.
If the shoulder portion of a
passenger belt is pulled out
all the way, the child restraint
locking feature may be engaged.
If this happens, let the belt go
back all the way and start again.
3. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. If the latch plate will not go fully
into the buckle, check if the
correct buckle is being used.
The buckle for the center rear
passenger position (A) has
the word CENTER on it.
Pull up on the latch plate to
make sure it is secure. If the belt
is not long enough, see
Safety
Belt Extender on page 2-21 .
Position the release button on
the buckle so that the safety belt
could be quickly unbuckled if
necessary.
2-18 Seats and Restraints
Page 40 of 318

Push down on the release button
and move the height adjuster to the
desired position. The adjuster can be
moved up by pushing on the front of
the height adjuster.
After the adjuster is set to the
desired position, try to move it down
without pushing the button to make
sure it has locked into position.
Safety Belt Pretensioners
This vehicle has safety belt
pretensioners for the front outboard
occupants. Although the safety beltpretensioners cannot be seen, they
are part of the safety belt assembly.
They can help tighten the safety belts
during the early stages of a moderate
to severe frontal and near frontal
crash if the threshold conditions
for pretensioner activation are met.
And, if the vehicle has side impact
airbags, safety belt pretensioners
can help tighten the safety belts in
a side crash.
If the passenger sensing system
detects that there is not a passenger
in the right front passenger position,
the safety belt pretensioner for
that position will not activate.
See
Passenger Sensing System
on page 2-29.
Pretensioners work only once. If the
pretensioners activate in a crash,
they will need to be replaced, and
probably other new parts for your
safety belt system. See Replacing
Safety Belt System Parts After a
Crash on page 2-22.
Safety Belt Use During
Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone,
including pregnant women. Like all
occupants, they are more likely to be
seriously injured if they do not wear
safety belts.
A pregnant woman should wear a
lap-shoulder belt, and the lap portion
should be worn as low as possible,
below the rounding, throughout
the pregnancy.
2-20 Seats and Restraints
Page 45 of 318

The right front passenger frontal
airbag is in the instrument panel on
the passenger’s side.
If the vehicle has seat-mounted side
impact airbags for the driver and right
front passenger, they are in the side
of the seatbacks closest to the door.If the vehicle has roof-rail airbags for
the driver, right front passenger, and
second row outboard passengers,
they are in the ceiling above the side
windows.
{CAUTION
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the airbag
might not inflate properly or it might
force the object into that person
causing severe injury or even
death. The path of an inflating
airbag must be kept clear. Do not
put anything between an occupant
and an airbag, and do not attach or
put anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other airbag
covering.
(Continued)
CAUTION (Continued)
Do not use seat accessories
that block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of
an inflating roof-rail airbag will
be blocked.
Driver Side shown,
Passenger Side similar
Seats and Restraints 2-25
Page 48 of 318

How Does an Airbag
Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or
near frontal collisions, even belted
occupants can contact the steering
wheel or the instrument panel.
In moderate to severe side collisions,
even belted occupants can contact
the inside of the vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Frontal
airbags distribute the force of the
impact more evenly over the
occupant’s upper body, stopping
the occupant more gradually.
Seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags distribute the force
of the impact more evenly over the
occupant’s upper body.
But airbags would not help in many
types of collisions, primarily because
the occupant’s motion is not toward
those airbags. SeeWhen Should an
Airbag In ate? on page 2-26 for
more information.
Airbags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts.
What Will You See After
an Airbag In ates?
After the frontal airbags and
seat-mounted side impact airbags
inflate, they quickly deflate, so
quickly that some people may not
even realize an airbag inflated.
Roof-rail airbags may still be at least
partially inflated for some time after
they deploy. Some components of
the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the
airbag modules, see What Makes
an Airbag In ate? on page 2-27 .
The parts of the airbag that come
into contact with you may be warm,
but not too hot to touch. There may
be some smoke and dust coming
from the vents in the deflated
airbags. Airbag inflation does not
prevent the driver from seeing out
of the windshield or being able to
steer the vehicle, nor does it prevent
people from leaving the vehicle.
{CAUTION
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 unlock the doors, turn
the interior lamps on, and turn the
hazard warning flashers on when
the airbags inflate. You can lock
the doors, turn the interior lamps off,
and turn the hazard warning flashers
off by using the controls for those
features.
2-28 Seats and Restraints