___ s_ a_ f_ e_ t_ y~ b_ e_ lt_s _____________________________________________ _
- Insert t he tongue into the correct buck le of your seat until
you hear it latch secure ly==> fig. 131 .
- Pull on the be lt to make sure tha t it is secure ly la tched in
the buck le.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety be lt is equipped with an automatic be lt retractor on the
shoulder be lt. This feat ure locks the be lt whe n the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an acc ident. The belt may also lock
w hen you dr ive up or dow n a steep hill or throug h a sharp curve.
Dur ing normal driv ing the belt lets you move freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped w ith a belt pretensioner that helps to
t ighten the safety be lt and remove sla ck when the p re tensioner is
act ivated. The function of the pretensioner is monitored by a warn ing
light =>
page 15.
Switchable locking feature
Every sa fety be lt ex ce pt t he one on the driver sea t is eq uipped wi th a
switchab le locking feature that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to at tach a child safety seat. Be s ure to read t he importa nt info r
mation about this feature=>
page 177.
& WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can c au se se rious injury in a n
accident =>
page 140, "Safety b elt po sition ".
• Safety belts offer optimum protection only when the seatback
i s upr ight and belts are properly positioned on the body .
• Always make sure th at the rear seat backre st to which the
center rear safety belt is attached i s secur ely latched when ever the
rear cente r sa fety belt is be ing u sed . If the ba ckre st is not securely
latched, the pas senger will move forward with th e backre st during
sudde n braking, in a sudden maneuve r and especiall y in a crash .
& WARNING (continued )
• Never attach the safety belt to the buckle fo r another seat .
Attaching the belt to the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause ser ious personal injury.
• A pass enger who i s not properly restrained can be seriou sly
i njured by the safety belt itself when it mo ves from the stronger
part s of the body into critical area s like the abdomen.
• Alway s loc k the convertible locking retractor when you a re
securing a child safety seat in the vehicle=>
page 179. •
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maximum
pro tection from safety belts .
Fig. 132 Hea d
r e str aint a nd safet y
belt po sit ion a s seen
from the side
Standard features on your vehicle help you adjust the position of the
safety belt to match your bo dy size.
• belt h eight adjustment for the fron t sea ts,
• automatic belt height adjustment for the rear seats .
-Safety belts ----------------
& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal
injury in an accident.
• Expectant mothers must always wear the lap portion of the
safety belt as low as possible across the pelvis and below the
rounding of the abdomen.
• Always read and heed all WARNINGS and other important
information ~
& in "Fastening safety belts" on page 139. •
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release button only
after the vehicle has stopped.
Fig. 134 Releasing
the tongue from the
buckle
- Push the red release button on the buckle ~ page 142 ,
fig. 134. The belt tongue will spr ing out of the buckle
~& -
- Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you guide the belt
tongue to its stowed position.
& WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is moving. Doing so
will increase your risk of being injured or killed. •
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjustment , the
three point safety belt strap routing can be fitted to the
shoulder area, according to body size.
Fig. 135 Safety belt
height adjustment for
the front seats -loop
around fittings
-Push the loop-around fittings up~ fig. 135 @, or
- squeeze together the (D button, and push the loop-
around fittings
down @.
- Pull the belt to make sure that the upper attachment is
properly engaged.
& WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and other important infor-
mation ~
page 138. .,
_____________________________________________ S_a _f _e _t _y _b_ e_lt _ s __ _
[I) Tips
• T he shoulder belt part shou ld route approximate ly over the
middle of your shoulder -under no circumstances shou ld it route over
you r neck a nd throat area~ & in "Safety belt position" on
page 140 .
• With the front seats, the height adjustment of the seat can also
be used to adjust the position of the safety belts. •
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause severe inju
nes.
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause serious injury or
death . Safety belts can only work when they are correctly
positioned on the body . Improper seating positions reduce
the effectiveness of safety belts and will even increase the
ris k of injury and death by moving the safety belt to critical
areas of the body . Improper seating positions also increase
the risk of serious injury and death when an airbag deploys
and str ikes an occupant who is not in the correct seating posi
tion. A driver is responsible for the safety of all vehicle occu pants and especially for chi ldren. T herefore:
- Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect sitting posi-
tion in the vehicle while traveling
~ & .
The fo llowing lists on ly some examples of imprope rly worn safety
belts th at will increase the risk of ser ious injury and death . O ur hope
is that these examples w ill make you more aware of seat ing pos itions
t ha t are dangero us.
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is moving :
• never wear the sho ulder belt unde r yo ur arm
• neve r let the shoulder be lt pass ove r you r neck
• neve r wear the safety belt loosely
Controls and equip
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
•
never place the lap belt portion of the safety belt across your
abdomen ~& -
& WARNING
Improperly worn safety belt s in cre ase th e risk of seriou s per sona l
injur y and death whene ver a vehicle is being used.
• Alway s make sur e that all vehicle occupants are correctly
re st ra ined and st ay in a c orrect se ating po sition whene ve r the
vehi cle i s bei ng used .
• Always re a d and heed all WARNINGS and other important
informat ion ~
page 13 8. •
Safety belt pretensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear end collisions above a particular
severity, safety belts are tensioned automatically .
The safety belts are eq uipped with safety belt p retensioners. The
system is activated by sensors in fron t, side and rear-end collisions of
great sever ity. Thi s tightens t he be lt and takes up belt slack~ & in
"Service and disposal of sa fety belt p retens ioner". Tak ing up the slack
helps to reduce forward occupan t movement during a collis ion .
0 Note
Never le t the bel t remain over a rear seatback that has been folded
forward.
[I) Tips
The safety belt pretensioners can only be act ivated once .
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data
& WARNING (continued)
• Make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certi·
fied by its manufacturer for use
on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag.
• Always follow the manufacturer's instructions provided with
the child safety seat or infant carrier.
• Always move the front passenger seat into the rearmost posi
tion of the passenger seat's fore and aft adjustment range, and as
far away from the airbag as possible before installing the child
restraint.
• Always make sure that nothing prevents the front passenger's
seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its fore and aft
adjustment range.
• Always make sure the backrest is in an
upright position.
• Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light comes on
and stays on all the time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
• If the light does not stay on, perform the checks => page 156,
"Monitoring the Advanced Airbag System".
• Take the child restraint off the front passenger seat and install
it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the PASSENGER AIR
BAG
OFF light does not stay on whenever the ignition is switched
on. a
Safety first Vehicle OP-eration
Child Safety
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect children
weighing between about 40 lbs. and 80 lbs. (18 kg and
36 kg) who are less than 4 ft.
9 in.
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall .
Fig. 147 Rear seat:
child properly
restrained in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit most children until
they are at least 4 ft. 9 in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and
weigh about 80 lbs. (36 kg). Booster seats raise these chil
dren up so that the safety belt will pass properly over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt can help
protect them in a crash.
- Do not use the convertible locking retractor when using
the vehicle's safety belt to restrain a child on a booster
seat.
- Always position the shoulder portion of the safety belt
midway over the child's shoulder. If you must transport an
older child in a booster seat on the front passenger seat,
you can use the safety belt height adjustment to help
adjust the shoulder portion properly.
- Always make sure that the shoulder portion of the safety
belt never rests against or across the child's neck.
9'>
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data
___________________________________________ A_ l!;:p ...:...h .:..: a:.:.. b.::....:: e..:t ..:..ic ::.. a:.:. l :....:..: in....:.-=: d..:e :.:.x..:.__ __
Replacing a sound system .... ... .. .. . 302
Replacing light bu lbs ... .. ... ... ..... 285
Replacing tires and wheels ............ 258
Replacing windshield wiper blades ...... 69
Reporting Safety Defects ......... .... 133
Reset button ........................ 10
Resetting remote control ....... .. ..... 43
Retractor ..... ...... .. .. .. .... ..... 139
Reverse
Automatic transmission .... .. .....
115
Rims
Cast alloy ...................... .
212
Replacing ....................... 257
Steel rims .................... .. . 212
Roof rack
Attachment points w ith separate roof rack
system ................ .........
87
Loading .. .. .. ... .... ... .. .. ..... 88
Mounting locations ........... .... . 88
Safe mounting ............... ..... 86
Roof weight .... .. .. ............. .... 88
s
S tronic ........ ...... .. ... ........ 115
Driving Notes .................... 117
Emergency program ........... ... 121
Kick-down .. ............ ........ 120
T i ptronic ... .. ... ... ...... ....... 119
Tipt ronic controls on the steering wheel .
120
SAFE ............................... 10
Safe driving habits ..... .. .. .. .. ..... 124
Safety belt position .... .... ......... 140
Safety belt height adjustment .. .. .. 142
Safety belts worn by pregnant women ...
141
Safety belt pretensioner ........... ... 143
Service and disposal .............. 144
Safety belt warning light ......... 15, 135
Safety belts . ...... .............. ... 139
cleaning ..................... ... 217
Danger to passengers who do not wear a
safety belt .................. ...
13 7
Fastening .. .. .......... ......... 139
height adjustment ....... ...... .. .
142
Improperly worn ................. 143
Not worn ....................... 137
Safety belt position ............... 140
Safety instructions .. .. ... ..... .. . 138
Securing child safety seats ......... 177
Spe cial considerat ions fo r pregnant
women ................ .... .. ..
141
Unfastening .. ................. .. 142
Warning/indicator light ........... 135
Why YOU MUST wear them .... 135, 136
Worn properly ................... 138
Launch Control Program .......... . 120 S f
S l
t l
l
k
11
a ety compliance sticker ............. 294
e ec or ever oc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Safety equipment .... ............. ..
124 Selector lever positions ........ ... . 115
Safety features for occupant restraint and
protection .................. ...
124
Safety guidelines
Seat adjustment ................. .
73
Safety instructions
Engine compartment ..... ..... .. .
226
for side curtain airbags ............ 166
for using child safety seats ......... 170
for using safety belts ............. 138
Monitoring the Advanced Airbag System .
158
Safety lock
Ignition key, automatic transmission
106
Seat adjustment
Driver's seat ................ .... ..
73
Front passenger's seat ............. 7 4
Front seats ... ..... ...... ...... ...
73
Head restraints .................. 128
Head restraints, front seat .......... 77
Lumbar support .. .. ............... 77
Manual controls .. .. .... ...... ..... 7 4
Manual seats ....... .......... .. ..
74
Power seat .. ..... ................ 75
Seat be lts
Why YOU MUST wear them . . . .
135, 136
See also Safety belts ...... .. ... .. . 135
Seating capacity ....... ...... ... . .. . 135
Seating pos it ion
Driver .............. ... .. .... ...
126
Front passenger ................ .. 127
How to adjust the front seats ....... 12 7
Incorrect seat position .. ..........
129
Occupants .. ................... . 126
Rear passengers ................ . 128
Controls and equip
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data