Based on the severity and type of collision, the side air
bag inflator on the crash side of the vehicle may be
triggered, releasing a quantity of non-toxic gas. The
inflating SAB exits through the seat seam into the space
between the occupant and the door. The SAB fully inflate
in about 10 milliseconds. The side air bag 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 air bag inflates. This
especially applies to children.
Front And Side Impact Sensors
In front and side impacts, impact sensors can aid the
ORC in determining appropriate response to impact
events.
Enhanced Accident Response System
In the event of an impact causing air bag deployment, if
the communication network remains intact, and the
power remains intact, depending on the nature of theevent the ORC will determine whether to have the
Enhanced Accident Response System perform the follow-
ing functions:
•Cut off fuel to the engine.
•Flash hazard lights as long as the battery has power or
until the ignition key is turned off.
•Turn on the interior lights, which remain on as long as
the battery has power or until the ignition key is
removed.
•Unlock the doors automatically.
If A Deployment Occurs
The Advanced Front Air Bags are designed to deflate
immediately after deployment.
NOTE:
Front and/or side air bags will not deploy in all
collisions. This does not mean something is wrong with
the air bag system.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 63
•Whether or not the driver and passenger safety belts
were buckled/fastened;
•How far (if at all) the driver was depressing the
accelerator and/or brake pedal; and,
•How fast the vehicle was traveling.
These data can help provide a better understanding of
the circumstances in which crashes and injuries occur.
NOTE: EDR data are recorded by your vehicle only if a
non-trivial crash situation occurs; no data are recorded by
the EDR under normal driving conditions and no per-
sonal data (e.g., name, gender, age, and crash location)
are recorded. However, other parties, such as law en-
forcement, could combine the EDR data with the type of
personally identifying data routinely acquired during a
crash investigation. To read data recorded by an EDR, special equipment is
required, and access to the vehicle or the EDR is needed.
In addition to the vehicle manufacturer, other parties,
such as law enforcement, that have the special equip-
ment, can read the information if they have access to the
vehicle or the EDR.
Child Restraints
Everyone in your vehicle needs to be buckled up all the
time, including babies and children. Every state in the
United States and all Canadian provinces require that
small children ride in proper restraint systems. This is the
law, and you can be prosecuted for ignoring it.
Children 12 years or younger should ride properly
buckled up in a rear seat, if available. According to crash
statistics, children are safer when properly restrained in
the rear seats, rather than in the front.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 67
WARNING!
In a collision, an unrestrained child, even a tiny baby,
can become a projectile inside the vehicle. The force
required to hold even an infant on your lap could
become so great that you could not hold the child, no
matter how strong you are. The child and others
could be badly injured. Any child riding in your
vehicle should be in a proper restraint for the child’s
size.
There are different sizes and types of restraints for
children from newborn size to the child almost large
enough for an adult safety belt. Always check the child
seat owner’s manual to ensure you have the correct seat
for your child. Use the restraint that is correct for your
child.
Infants And Child Restraints
•
Safety experts recommend that children ride
rearward-facing in the vehicle until they are at least
one year old and weigh at least 20 lbs (9 kg). Two types
of child restraints can be used rearward-facing: infant
carriers and convertible child seats.
•The infant carrier is only used rearward-facing in the
vehicle. It is recommended for children who weigh up
to about 20 lbs (9 kg). Convertible child seats can be
used either rearward-facing or forward-facing in the
vehicle. Convertible child seats often have a higher
weight limit in the rearward-facing direction than
infant carriers do, so they can be used rearward-facing
by children who weigh more than 20 lbs (9 kg) but are
less than one year old. Both types of child restraints are
held in the vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt or the
LATCH child restraint anchorage system. Refer to
“Lower Anchors and Tether for CHildren (LATCH)”.
68 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE
WARNING!
Rearward-facing child seats must never be used in
the front seat of a vehicle with a front passenger air
bag. An air bag deployment could cause severe
injury or death to infants in this position.
Older Children And Child Restraints
Children who weigh more than 20 lbs (9 kg) and who are
older than one year can ride forward-facing in the
vehicle. Forward-facing child seats and convertible child
seats used in the forward-facing direction are for children
who weigh 20 to 40 lbs (9 to 18 kg) and who are older
than one year. These child seats are also held in the
vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt or the LATCH child
restraint anchorage system. Refer to “Lower Anchors and
Tether for CHildren (LATCH)”.The belt-positioning booster seat is for children weighing
more than 40 lbs (18 kg), but who are still too small to fit
the vehicle’s seat belts properly. If the child cannot sit
with knees bent over the vehicle’s cushion while the
child’s back is against the seatback, then the child should
use a belt-positioning booster seat. The child and booster
seat are held in the vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt.Children Too Large For Booster Seats
Children who are large enough to wear the shoulder belt
comfortably, and whose legs are long enough to bend
over the front of the seat when their back is against the
seatback, should use the lap/shoulder belt in a rear seat.
•Make sure that the child is upright in the seat.
•The lap portion should be low on the hips and as snug
as possible.
•Check belt fit periodically. A child’s squirming or
slouching can move the belt out of position.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 69
•If the shoulder belt contacts the face or neck, move the
child closer to the center of the vehicle. Never allow a
child to put the shoulder belt under an arm or behind
their back.
NOTE: For additional information, refer to
www.seatcheck.org or call 1–866–SEATCHECK. Cana-
dian residents should refer to Transport Canada’s web-
site for additional information: http://www.tc.gc.ca/
roadsafety/safedrivers/childsafety/index.htm
WARNING!
•Improper installation can lead to failure of an
infant or child restraint. It could come loose in a
collision. The child could be badly injured or
killed. Follow the manufacturer’s directions ex-
actly when installing an infant or child restraint. (Continued)
WARNING! (Continued)
•A rearward-facing child restraint should only be
used in a rear seat. A rearward-facing child re-
straint in the front seat may be struck by a deploy-
ing passenger air bag, which may cause severe or
fatal injury to the infant.
Here are some tips on getting the most out of your child
restraint:
•Children who are large enough to wear the shoulder
belt comfortably, and whose legs are long enough to
bend over the front of the seat when their back is
against the seatback, should use the lap/shoulder belt
in a rear seat.
•Before buying any restraint system, make sure that it
has a label certifying that it meets all applicable Safety
Standards. Chrysler Group LLC also recommends that
70 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE
you make sure that you can install the child restraint in
the vehicle where you will use it, before you buy it.
•The restraint must be appropriate for your child’s
weight and height. Check the label on the restraint for
weight and height limits.
•Carefully follow the instructions that come with the
restraint. If you install the restraint improperly, it may
not work when you need it.
•All passenger seating positions contain automatic
locking retractors. However, any seat belt system will
loosen with time, so check the belt occasionally and
pull it tight if necessary.
•Buckle the child into the seat according to the child
restraint manufacturer’s directions.
WARNING!
When your child restraint is not in use, secure it in
the vehicle with the seat belt or remove it from the
vehicle. Do not leave it loose in the vehicle. In a
sudden stop or accident, it could strike the occupants
or seatbacks and cause serious personal injury.
Lower Anchors and Tether for CHildren (LATCH)
Your vehicle is equipped with the child restraint anchor-
age system called LATCH. The LATCH system provides
for the installation of the child restraint without using the
vehicle’s seat belts. The two rear seating positions have
lower anchorages that are capable of accommodating
LATCH-compatible child seats having flexible, webbing-
mounted lower attachments or fixed lower attachments.
Regardless of the specific type of lower attachment, never
install LATCH-compatible child seats such that two seats
share a common lower anchorage. If you are installing
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 71
LATCH-compatible child restraints in adjacent rear seat-
ing positions, you can use the LATCH anchors or the
vehicle’s seat belts. If your child restraints are not
LATCH-compatible, you can only install the child re-
straints using the vehicle’s seat belts. For typical instal-
lation instructions, refer to “Installing The LATCH-
Compatible Child Restraint System”.
Rear Seat LATCH Anchors
Child restraints systems having attachments designed to
connect to the lower anchorages are now available. Child
restraints having tether straps and hooks for connection
to the top tether anchorage, have been available for some
time. In fact, many child restraint manufacturers will
provide add-on tether strap kits for some of their older
products. Tether anchorage kits are also available for
most older vehicles.Because the lower anchorages are to be introduced to
passenger carrying vehicles over a period of years, child
restraint systems having attachments for those anchor-
ages will continue to have features for installation in
vehicles using the lap or lap/shoulder belt. They will also
Rear Seat LATCH Anchors
72 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE
have tether straps, and you are urged to take advantage
of all of the available attachments provided with your
child restraint in any vehicle.
NOTE:When using the LATCH attaching system to
install a child restraint, please ensure that all seat belts
not being used for occupant restraints are stowed and out
of reach of children. It is recommended that before
installing the child restraint, buckle the seat belt so the
seat belt is tucked behind the child restraint and out of
reach. If the buckled seat belt interferes with the child
restraint installation, instead of tucking the seat belt
behind the child restraint, route the seat belt through the
child restraint belt path and then buckle it. This should
stow the seat belt out of the reach of an inquisitive child.
Remind all children in the vehicle that the seat belts are
not toys and should not be played with, and never leave
your child unattended in the vehicle.Installing The LATCH-Compatible Child Restraint
System
We urge you to carefully follow the directions of the
manufacturer when installing your child restraint. Not all
child restraint systems will be installed as described here.
Again, carefully follow the installation instructions that
were provided with the child restraint system.
The rear seat lower anchorages are round bars,
located at the rear of the seat cushion where it
meets the seatback, and are just visible when
you lean into the rear seat to install the child
restraint. You will easily feel them if you run your finger
along the intersection of the seatback and seat cushion
surfaces.
In addition, there are tether strap anchorages
behind each rear seating position. Access ports
to the tether anchors are located in the panel
between the rear seat and the rear window. The
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 73