2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid warning

Safety features of your vehicle
44 3
Condition and operation in the front passenger occupant classification system
*1) The system judges a person of adult size as an adult. When a smaller adult sits in
the front passenger seat, the system may recognize him/her as a child depending
on his/her physique and posture.
*2) Do not allow children to ride in the front passenger seat. When a larger child who
has outgrown a child restraint system sits in the front passenger seat, the system
may recognize him/her as an adult depending upon his/her physique or sitting
position.
*3) Never install a child restraint system on the front passenger seat.
*4) The PASSENGER AIR BAG "OFF" indicator may turn on or off when a child above
12 months to 12 years old (with or without child restraint system) sits in the front
passenger seat. This is a normal condition.
WARNING
Riding in an improper position or
placing weight on the front passen-
ger's seat when it is unoccupied by
a passenger adversely affects the
occupant classification system
(OCS).
(Continued)Condition detected by the
occupant classification system
Indicator/Warning lightDevices
PASSENGER
AIR BAG “OFF”
indicator lightSRS
warning lightFront passenger
air bag
1. Adult *1or child age 13 and up*2OffOffActivated
2. Infant or child restraint system with
12 months old*3, *4OnOffDeactivated
3. Unoccupied OnOffDeactivated
4. Malfunction in the systemOffOnActivated

Safety features of your vehicle
46 3
When an adult is seated in the front pas-
senger seat, if the PASS AIR BAG “OFF”
indicator is on, turn the engine start/stop
button to the OFF position and ask the
passenger to sit properly (sitting upright
with the seat back in an upright position,
centered on the seat cushion with their
seat belt on, legs comfortably extended
and their feet on the floor). Restart the
engine and have the person remain in
that position. This will allow the system to
detect the person and to enable the pas-
senger air bag.If the PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indicator is
still on, ask the passenger to move to the
rear seat.
✽ ✽
NOTICE
The PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indicator
illuminates for about 4 seconds after the
engine start/stop button is turned to the
ON position or after the engine is start-
ed. If the front passenger seat is occu-
pied, the occupant classification sensor
will then classify the front passenger
after several more seconds.
B990A01O
WARNING
Do not allow an adult passenger to
ride in the front seat when the PASS
AIR BAG “OFF” indicator is illumi-
nated because the air bag will not
deploy in the event of a crash. If the
PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indicator
remains illuminated after the adult
passenger repositions themselves
properly and the car is restarted, it
is recommended that passenger
move to the rear seat because the
passenger's front air bag will not
deploy.
Front seat passengers must stay
properly seated to avoid serious
injury from a deploying air bag.
Proper position
WARNING
Do not put a heavy load in the front
passenger seatback pocket or on the
front passenger seat. Do not hang
onto the front passenger seat. Do not
hang any items, such as a seatback
table, on the front passenger seat-
back. Do not place feet on the front
passenger seatback. Do not place
any items under the front passenger
seat. Any of these could interfere
with proper sensor operation.
WARNING
Even though your vehicle is
equipped with the occupant clas-
sification system, never install a
child restraint system in the front
passenger's seat. A deploying air
bag can forcefully strike a child
resulting in serious injuries or
death. Any child age 12 and
under should ride in the rear seat.
Children too large for child
restraints should use the avail-
able lap/shoulder belts. No mat-
ter what type of crash, children of
all ages are safer when restrained
in the rear seat.
(Continued)

Safety features of your vehicle
48 3
Driver's and passenger's front air
bag
Your vehicle is equipped with a
Supplemental Restraint (Air Bag) System
and lap/shoulder belts at both the driver
and passenger seating positions. The
indications of the system's presence are
the letters "SRS AIR BAG" or “AIR BAG"
embossed on the air bag pad cover in the
steering wheel and the passenger's side
front panel pad above the glove box.
The SRS consists of air bags installed
under the pad covers in the center of the
steering wheel and the passenger's side
front panel above the glove box.The purpose of the SRS is to provide the
vehicle's driver and/or the front passen-
ger with additional protection than that
offered by the seat belt system alone in
case of a frontal impact of sufficient
severity. The SRS uses sensors to gath-
er information about the driver's seat
position, the driver's and front passen-
ger's seat belt usage and impact severi-
ty.
OYF039030
Driver’s front air bag
WARNING
If the occupant classification sys-
tem is not working properly, the
SRS air bag warning light on the
instrument panel will illuminate
because the passenger's front air
bag is connected with the occupant
classification system. If there is a
malfunction of the occupant classi-
fication system, the PASS AIR BAG
"OFF" indicator will not illuminate
and the passenger's front air bag
will inflate in frontal impact crashes
even if there is no occupant in the
front passenger's seat. If the SRS
air bag warning light does not illu-
minate when the engine start/stop
button is turned to the ON position,
remains illuminated after approxi-
mately 6 seconds when the engine
start/stop button is turned to the
ON position, or if it illuminates
while the vehicle is being driven,
have an authorized HYUNDAI deal-
er inspect the occupant classifica-
tion system and the SRS air bag
system as soon as possible.
OYF039031
Passenger’s front air bag

349
Safety features of your vehicle
The driver's seat track position sensor,
which is installed on the seat track, deter-
mines if the seat is fore or aft of a refer-
ence position. The seat belt buckle sen-
sors determine if the driver and front pas-
senger's seat belts are fastened. These
sensors provide the ability to control the
SRS deployment based on how close the
driver's seat is to the steering wheel,
whether or not the seat belts are fas-
tened, and how severe the impact is.
The advanced SRS offers the ability to
control the air bag inflation within two lev-
els. A first stage level is provided for mod-
erate-severity impacts. A second stage
level is provided for more severe impacts.
According to the impact severity, seating
position and seat belt usage, the SRSCM
(SRS Control Module) controls the air
bag inflation. Failure to properly wear
seat belts can increase the risk or sever-
ity of injury in an accident.Additionally, your vehicle is equipped
with an occupant classification system in
the front passenger's seat. The occupant
classification system detects the pres-
ence of a passenger in the front passen-
ger's seat and will turn off the front pas-
senger's air bag under certain condi-
tions. For more detail, see "Occupant
classification system" in this section.
WARNING
If the occupant classification sys-
tem is not working properly, the
SRS air bag warning light on the
instrument panel will illuminate
because the SRS air bag warning
light is connected with the occu-
pant classification system. If the
SRS air bag warning light does not
illuminate when the engine
start/stop button is turned to the
ON position, remains illuminated
after approximately 6 seconds
when the engine start/stop button
is turned to the ON position, or if it
illuminates while the vehicle is
being driven, have an authorized
HYUNDAI dealer inspect the
advanced SRS air bag system as
soon as possible.
WARNING
Modification to the seat structure
can adversely affect the seat
track position sensor and cause
the air bag to deploy at a different
level than should be provided.
Do not place any objects under-
neath the front seats as they
could damage the seat track
position sensor or interfere with
the occupant classification sys-
tem.
Do not place any objects that may
cause magnetic fields near the
front seat. These may cause a
malfunction of the seat track
position sensor.

Safety features of your vehicle
50 3
✽
✽
NOTICE
• Be sure to read information about the
SRS on the labels provided on the sun
visor.
• Advanced air bags are combined with
pre-tensioner seat belts to help pro-
vide enhanced occupant protection in
frontal crashes. Front air bags are not
intended to deploy in collisions in
which protection can be provided by
the pre-tensioner seat belt.
(Continued)
Move your seat as far back as
practical from the front air bags,
while still maintaining control of
the vehicle.
You and your passengers should
never sit or lean unnecessarily
close to the air bags. Improperly
positioned driver and passengers
can be severely injured by inflat-
ing air bags.
Never lean against the door or
center console – always sit in an
upright position.
Do not allow an adult passenger
to ride in the front seat when the
PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indicator is
illuminated, because the air bag
will not deploy in the event of a
moderate or severe frontal crash.
(Continued)WARNING
Always use seat belts and child
restraints – every trip, every time,
everyone! Air bags inflate with con-
siderable force and in the blink of
an eye. Seat belts help keep occu-
pants in proper position to obtain
maximum benefit from the air bag.
Even with advanced air bags,
improperly and unbelted occupants
can be severely injured when the
air bag inflates. Always follow the
precautions about seat belts, air
bags and occupant safety con-
tained in this manual.
To reduce the chance of serious or
fatal injuries and receive the maxi-
mum safety benefit from your
restraint system:
Never place a child in any child or
booster seat in the front seat.
ABC – Always Buckle Children in
the back seat. It is the safest
place for children of any age to
ride.
Front and side air bags can injure
occupants improperly positioned
in the front seats.
(Continued)
WARNING
If you are considering modification
of your vehicle due to a disability,
please contact the Hyundai
Customer Assistance Center at 1-
800-633-5151.

351
Safety features of your vehicle
(Continued)
Even though your vehicle is
equipped with the occupant clas-
sification system, do not install a
child restraint system in the front
passenger seat position. A child
restraint system must never be
placed in the front seat. The infant
or child could be severely injured
or killed by an air bag deployment
in case of an accident.
Children age 12 and under must
always be properly restrained in
the rear seat. Never allow chil-
dren to ride in the front passen-
ger seat. If a child over 12 must
be seated in the front seat, he or
she must be properly belted and
the seat should be moved as far
back as possible.
For maximum safety protection in
all types of crashes, all occu-
pants including the driver should
always wear their seat belts
whether or not an air bag is also
provided at their seating position
to minimize the risk of severe
injury or death in the event of a
crash. Do not sit or lean unneces-
sarily close to the air bag while
the vehicle is in motion.
(Continued)(Continued)
No objects should be placed over
or near the air bag modules on
the steering wheel, instrument
panel, and the front passenger's
panel above the glove box,
because any such object could
cause harm if the vehicle is in a
crash severe enough to cause
the air bags to deploy.
Never place covers, blankets or
seat warmers on the passenger
seat as these may interfere with
the occupant classification sys-
tem.
Do not tamper with or disconnect
SRS wiring or other components
of the SRS system. Doing so
could result in injury, due to acci-
dental deployment of the air bags
or by rendering the SRS inopera-
tive.
If the SRS air bag warning light
remains illuminated while the
vehicle is being driven, have an
authorized HYUNDAI dealer
inspect the air bag system as
soon as possible.
(Continued)(Continued)
Air bags can only be used once –
have an authorized HYUNDAI
dealer replace the air bag imme-
diately after deployment.
The SRS is designed to deploy
the front air bags only when an
impact is sufficiently severe and
when the impact angle is less
than 30° from the forward longitu-
dinal axis of the vehicle.
Additionally, the air bags will only
deploy once. Seat belts must be
worn at all times.
Front air bags are not intended to
deploy in side-impact, rear-
impact or rollover crashes. In
addition, front air bags will not
deploy in frontal crashes below
the deployment threshold.
(Continued)

353
Safety features of your vehicle
Curtain air bag
Curtain air bags are located along both
sides of the roof rails above the front and
rear doors.
They are designed to help protect the
heads of the front seat occupants and
the rear outboard seat occupants in cer-
tain side impact collisions.
WARNING
The side impact air bag is sup-
plemental to the driver's and the
passenger's seat belt systems
and is not a substitute for them.
Therefore your seat belts must be
worn at all times while the vehicle
is in motion. The air bags deploy
only in certain side impact condi-
tions severe enough to cause
significant injury to the vehicle
occupants.
For best protection from the side
impact air bag system and to
avoid being injured by the
deploying side impact air bag,
both front seat occupants should
sit in an upright position with the
seat belt properly fastened. The
driver's hands should be placed
on the steering wheel at the 9:00
and 3:00 positions. The passen-
ger's arms and hands should be
placed on their laps.
Do not use any accessory seat
covers.
(Continued)
(Continued)
Use of seat covers could reduce
or prevent the effectiveness of
the system.
Do not install any accessories on
the side or near the side air bag.
Do not place any objects over the
air bag or between the air bag
and yourself.
Do not place any objects (an
umbrella, bag, etc.) between the
front door and the front seat.
Such objects may become dan-
gerous projectiles and cause
injury if the supplemental side air
bag inflates.
To prevent unexpected deploy-
ment of the side impact air bag
that may result in personal injury,
avoid impact to the side impact
sensor when the engine
start/stop button is on.
If the seat or seat cover is dam-
aged, have the vehicle checked
and repaired by an authorized
HYUNDAI dealer because your
vehicle is equipped with side
impact air bags and an occupant
classification system.
OYF039026
OYF039058N

Safety features of your vehicle
54 3
The curtain air bags are designed to
deploy only during certain side impact
collisions, depending on the crash sever-
ity, angle, speed and impact. The curtain
air bags are not designed to deploy in all
side impact situations, collisions from the
front or rear of the vehicle or in most
rollover situations.
WARNING
In order for side and curtain air
bags to provide the best protec-
tion, front seat occupants and
outboard rear occupants should
sit in an upright position with the
seat belts properly fastened.
Importantly, children should sit in
a proper child restraint system in
the rear seat.
When children are seated in the
rear outboard seats, they must be
seated in the proper child
restraint system. Make sure to
put the child restraint system as
far away from the door side as
possible, and secure the child
restraint system in a locked posi-
tion.
Do not allow the passengers to
lean their heads or bodies onto
doors, put their arms on the
doors, stretch their arms out of
the window, or place objects
between the doors and passen-
gers when they are seated on
seats equipped with side and/or
curtain air bags.
(Continued)
(Continued)
Never try to open or repair any
components of the side curtain
air bag system. This should only
be done by an authorized
HYUNDAI dealer.
Failure to follow the above instruc-
tions can result in injury or death to
the vehicle occupants in an acci-
dent.