2011 HONDA FIT Owners Manual

This section gives you important
information about how to protect
yourself and your passengers. It shows
you how to use seat belts. It explains
how your airbags work. And it tells you
how to properly restrain infants and
children in your vehicle.
Important Safety Precautions.............6
Your Vehicle's Safety Features ..........7
Seat Belts ..................................... 8
Airbags ........................................ 9
Protecting Adults and Teens ...........11
1. Close and Lock the Doors ........11
2. Adjust the Front Seats .............11
3. Adjust the Seat-Backs ..............12
4. Adjust the Head Restraints ......13
5. Fasten and Position the Seat Belts .................................. 14
6. Maintain a Proper Sitting Position .............................. 15
Advice for Pregnant Women ........16
Additional Safety Precautions ......17
Additional Information About Your
Seat Belts ...............................
18
Seat Belt System Components .....18 Lap/Shoulder Belt
......................19
Automatic Seat Belt Tensioners .............................
20
Seat Belt Maintenance ................20
Additional Information About Your Airbags ..................................
22
Airbag System Components ........22
How Your Front Airbags Work ....24
How Your Side Airbags Work ......28
How Your Side Curtain Airbags Work ..................................... 29
How the SRS Indicator Works .....30
How the Side Airbag Off Indicator Works .....................
30
How the Passenger Airbag Off Indicator Works .....................31
Airbag Service ............................ 32
Additional Safety Precautions ......33
Protecting Children General
Guidelines ..............................
34
All Children Must Be Restrained .............................. 34
All Children Should Sit in a Back
Seat .......................................
35
The Passenger's Front Airbag Can Pose Serious Risks ...........35If You Must Drive with Several
Children ................................
37
If a Child Requires Close Attention ................................ 37
Additional Safety Precautions ......38
Protecting Infants and Small Children .................................
39
Protecting Infants .......................39
Protecting Small Children ...........40
Selecting a Child Seat .....................41
Installing a Child Seat .....................42
Installing a Child Seat with LATCH .................................. 43
Installing a Child Seat with a Lap/Shoulder Belt ..................45
Installing a Child Seat with a Tether ...................................
47
Protecting Larger Children .............49
Checking Seat Belt Fit ................49
Using a Booster Seat ...................50
When Can a Larger Child Sit in Front ..................................... 51
Additional Safety Precautions ......52
Carbon Monoxide Hazard ...............53
Safety Labels .................................. 54
Driver and Passenger Safety
5
Driver and Passenger Safety
Main MenuTable of Contents

You'll find many safety
recommendations throughout this
section, and throughout this manual.
The recommendations on this page are
the ones we consider to be the most important.
Always Wear Your Seat Belt
A seat belt is your best protection in all
types of collisions. Airbags are designed
to supplement seat belts, not replace
them. So even though your vehicle is
equipped with airbags, make sure you
and your passengers always wear your
seat belts, and wear them properly (see
page 14).
Restrain All Children
Children age 12 and under should ride
properly restrained in a back seat, not
the front seat. Infants and small children
should be restrained in a child seat.
Larger children should use a booster
seat and a lap/shoulder belt until they
can use the belt properly without a
booster seat (see pages 3452). Be Aware of Airbag Hazards
While airbags can save lives, they can
cause serious or fatal injuries to
occupants who sit too close to them, or
are not properly restrained. Infants,
young children, and short adults are at
the greatest risk. Be sure to follow all
instructions and warnings in this manual.
Don't Drink and Drive
Alcohol and driving don't mix. Even one
drink can reduce your ability to respond
to changing conditions, and your
reaction time gets worse with every
additional drink. So don't drink and
drive, and don't let your friends drink
and drive, either.
Pay Appropriate Attention to the
Task of Driving Safely
Engaging in mobile phone conversation
or other activities that keep you from
paying close attention to the road, other
vehicles and pedestrians could lead to a
crash. Remember, situations can change
quickly, and only you can decide when it
is safe to divert attention away from driving. Control Your Speed
Excessive speed is a major factor in
crash injuries and deaths. Generally, the
higher the speed, the greater the risk,
but serious injuries can also occur at
lower speeds. Never drive faster than is
safe for current conditions, regardless of
the maximum speed posted.
Keep Your Vehicle in Safe Condition
Having a tire blowout or a mechanical
failure can be extremely hazardous. To
reduce the possibility of such problems,
check your tire pressures and condition
frequently, and perform all regularly
scheduled maintenance (see page 247).
Important Safety Precautions
6
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Your vehicle is equipped with many
features that work together to protect
you and your passengers during acrash.
Some features do not require any
action on your part. These include a
strong steel framework that forms a
safety cage around the passenger
compartment, front and rear crush
zones, a collapsible steering column,
and tensioners that tighten the front
seat belts in a crash.
However, you and your passengers
can't take full advantage of these
features unless you remain sitting in
the correct position and
always wear
your seat belts.
In fact, some safety
features can contribute to injuries if
they are not used properly.
The following pages explain how you
can take an active role in protecting
yourself and your passengers.
(7)
(1) (4)
(5) (9) (3)
(11)
(2)(8)
(10)
(6)
(2) (1) Safety Cage
(2) Crush Zones
(3) Seats and Seat-Backs
(4) Head Restraints
(5) Collapsible Steering Column
(6) Seat Belts
(7) Front Airbags
(8) Side Airbags
(9) Side Curtain Airbags
(10) Front Seat Belt Tensioners
(11) Door Locks
(12) Occupant Position Detection
System (OPDS) Sensor
(12)
(9)
(8) (11)
(7)
Your Vehicle's Safety Features
7
Driver and Passenger Safety
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Seat Belts
Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in all seating positions.
Your seat belt system also includes
an indicator on the instrument panel
and a beeper to remind you and your
passengers to fasten your seat belts.
Why Wear Seat Belts
Seat belts are the single most
effective safety device for adults and
larger children. (Infants and smaller
children must be properly restrained
in child seats.)
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces and territories
require you to wear seat belts.
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle hasairbags.
Be sure you and your
passengers always wear seat
belts and wear them properly.
When properly worn, seat belts: Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle's built-in safety features.
Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including: frontal impacts
 side impacts
 rear impacts
 rollovers
Help keep you from being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against other occupants.
Keep you from being thrown out of
the vehicle.
Help keep you in a good position
should the airbags ever deploy. A
good position reduces the risk of
injury from an inflating airbag and
allows you to get the best
advantage from the airbag.
Of course, seat belts cannot
completely protect you in every
crash. But in most cases, seat belts
can reduce your risk of seriousinjury.
What You Should Do:
Always wear your seat belt, and
make sure you wear it properly.
Your Vehicle's Safety Features
8
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Airbags
Your vehicle has a supplemental
restraint system (SRS) with front
airbags to help protect the heads and
chests of the driver and a front seat
passenger during a moderate to
severe frontal collision (see page 24
for more information on how your
front airbags work).
Your vehicle also has side airbags to
help protect the upper torso of the
driver or a front seat passenger
during a moderate to severe side
impact (see page 28 for more
information on how your side airbagswork).In addition, your vehicle has side
curtain airbags to help protect the
heads of the driver, front passenger,
and passengers in the outer rear
seating positions during a moderate
to severe side or front impact (see
page 29 for more information on how
your side curtain airbags work).
CONTINUED
Your Vehicle's Safety Features
9
Driver and Passenger Safety
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The most important things you need
to know about your airbags are:
Airbags do not replace seat belts.
They are designed to supplement
the seat belts.

Airbags offer no protection in rear impacts, or minor frontal or side
collisions.
Airbags can pose serious hazards.
To do their job, airbags must
inflate with tremendous force. So
while airbags help save lives, they
can cause minor injuries or more
serious or even fatal injuries if
occupants are not properly
restrained or sitting properly.
What you should do:Always wear
your seat belt properly, and sit
upright and as far back from the
steering wheel as possible while
allowing full control of the vehicle. A
front passenger should move their
seat as far back from the dashboard
as possible. The rest of this section gives more
detailed information about how you
can maximize your safety.
Remember, however, that no safety
system can prevent all injuries or
deaths that can occur in a severe
crash, even when seat belts are
properly worn and the airbagsdeploy.
Your Vehicle's Safety Features
10
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Introduction
The following pages provide
instructions on how to properly
protect the driver, adult passengers,
and teenage children who are large
enough and mature enough to drive
or ride in the front.
See pages 3438 for important
guidelines on how to properly protect
infants, small children, and larger
children who ride in your vehicle.
1. Close and Lock the Doors
After everyone has entered the
vehicle, be sure the doors and the
tailgate are closed and locked.Your vehicle has a door and
tailgate open indicator on
the instrument panel to indicate
when any door or the tailgate is not
tightly closed.
Locking the doors reduces the
chance of someone being thrown out
of the vehicle during a crash, and it
helps prevent passengers from
accidentally opening a door and
falling out.
Locking the doors and the tailgate
also helps prevent an outsider from
unexpectedly opening a door or the
tailgate when you come to a stop.
See page 81 for how to lock the
doors, and page 62 for how the door
and tailgate open indicator works.
Some models have the auto door
locking/unlocking feature. For more
information, see page 83. 2. Adjust the Front Seats
Adjust the driver's seat as far to the
rear as possible while allowing you to
maintain full control of the vehicle.
Have a front passenger adjust their
seat as far to the rear as possible.
CONTINUED
Protecting Adults and Teens
11
Driver and Passenger Safety
Main MenuTable of Contents

If you sit too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard, you can be
seriously injured by an inflating front
airbag, or by striking the steering
wheel or dashboard.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport
Canada recommend that drivers
allow at least 10 inches (25 cm)
between the center of the steering
wheel and the chest. In addition to
adjusting the seat, you can adjust the
steering wheel up and down, and in
and out (see page 77).
If you cannot get far enough away
from the steering wheel and still
reach the controls, we recommend
that you investigate whether some
type of adaptive equipment may help.
Sitting too close to a front
airbag can result in serious
injury or death if the front
airbags inflate.
Always sit as far back from the
front airbags as possible.
Once a seat is adjusted correctly,
rock it back and forth to make sure it
is locked in position.
See page 93 for how to adjust the
front seats. 3. Adjust the Seat-Backs
Adjust the driver's seat-back to a
comfortable, upright position, leaving
ample space between your chest and
the airbag cover in the center of the
steering wheel.
Passengers with adjustable seat-
backs should also adjust their seat-
back to a comfortable, uprightposition.
Protecting Adults and Teens
12
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