
Combining Safety Belt and LATCH Lower Anchors for Attaching
Child Safety Seats
When used in combination, either the safety belt or the LATCH lower
anchors may be attached first, provided a proper installation is achieved.
Attach the tether strap afterward, if included with the child seat.
Using Tether Straps
Many forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap
which extends from the back of the child safety seat and hooks
to an anchoring point called the top tether anchor. Tether
straps are available as an accessory for many older safety seats.
Contact the manufacturer of your child seat for information about
ordering a tether strap, or to obtain a longer tether strap if the tether
strap on your safety seat does not reach the appropriate top tether
anchor in the vehicle.
Attach the tether strap only to the appropriate tether anchor as shown.
The tether strap may not work properly if attached somewhere other
than the correct tether anchor.
Note:If you install a child seat with rigid LATCH attachments, and have
attached the top tether strap to the proper top tether anchor, do not
tighten the tether strap enough to lift the child seat off the vehicle seat
cushion when the child is seated in it. Keep the tether strap just snug
without lifting the front of the child seat. Keeping the child seat just
touching the vehicle seat gives the best protection in a severe crash.
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Second Row Bucket Seats
The tether strap can be attached
directly to the tether bracket under
the back edge of the seat cushion.
1. Route the child safety tether strap over the back of the left hand or
right hand second row bucket seat.
2. Clip the tether strap hook to the
seat pedestal at the location shown.
If the tether strap is clipped
incorrectly, the child safety seat
may not be retained properly in the
event of a collision.
3. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions.
If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child being
injured in a collision greatly increases.
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Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth Row Bench Seats
For the center position of a
three-passenger bench seat, the
tether strap can be attached
directly to the tether bracket
provided under the back edge of the
seat cushion. For the outboard
positions, the tether strap can be
attached to the slot in the side of
the seat pedestal.
1. For any three-passenger bench seat, place the child safety seat in any
of the seating positions. For the four passenger bench, the tether
anchors are located on the left and right hand positions only.
2. Route the child safety tether
strap over the back of the bench
seat.
3. For any three passenger bench, clip the center tether strap hook to
the tether bracket mounted under rear rail of seat cushion frame. For
either the three or four passenger bench, clip the outboard tether strap
hooks to the tether bracket slot provided on the left side of each seat
pedestal. The slot is located between the two holes.
If the tether strap is clipped incorrectly, the child safety seat may not be
retained properly in the event of a collision.
4. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions.
If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child being
injured in a collision greatly increases.
If your child restraint system is equipped with a tether strap, and the
child restraint manufacturer recommends its use, Ford also recommends
its use.
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PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION
WARNING:Always drive and ride with your seatback upright
and the lap belt snug and low across the hips.
WARNING:To reduce the risk of injury, make sure children sit
where they can be properly restrained.
WARNING:Never let a passenger hold a child on his or her lap
while the vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the
child from injury in a collision.
WARNING:All occupants of the vehicle, including the driver,
should always properly wear their safety belts, even when an
airbag supplemental restraint system (SRS) is provided.
WARNING:It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area,
inside or outside of a vehicle. In a collision, people riding in these
areas are more likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not allow
people to ride in any area of your vehicle that is not equipped with
seats and safety belts. Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and
using a safety belt properly.
WARNING:In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is
significantly more likely to die than a person wearing a safety
belt.
WARNING:Each seating position in your vehicle has a specific
safety belt assembly which is made up of one buckle and one
tongue that are designed to be used as a pair. 1) Use the shoulder belt
on the outside shoulder only. Never wear the shoulder belt under the
arm. 2) Never swing the safety belt around your neck over the inside
shoulder. 3) Never use a single belt for more than one person.
WARNING:When possible, all children 12 years old and under
should be properly restrained in a rear seating position.
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WARNING:Safety belts and seats can become hot in a vehicle
that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn a
small child. Check seat covers and buckles before you place a child
anywhere near them.
WARNING:Front and rear seat occupants, including pregnant
women, should wear safety belts for optimum protection in an
accident.
All seating positions in this vehicle have lap and shoulder safety belts. All
occupants of the vehicle should always properly wear their safety belts,
even when an airbag supplemental restraint system is provided.
The safety belt system consists of:
•Lap and shoulder safety belts.
•Shoulder safety belt with automatic locking mode, (except driver
safety belt).
•Height adjuster at the front outboard seating positions
•Safety belt pretensioner at the front outboard seating positions.
•Safety belt warning light and chime. SeeSafety belt warning
light and indicator chimelater in this chapter.
•Crash sensors and monitoring system with readiness
indicator. SeeCrash sensors and airbag indicatorin the
Supplemental Restraints Systemchapter.
The safety belt pretensioners are designed to activate in frontal or
near-frontal collisions and may deploy in rollovers if the vehicle is
equipped with roll stability control. The safety belt pretensioners at the
front seating positions are designed to tighten the safety belts firmly
against the occupant’s body when activated. This helps increase the
effectiveness of the safety belts.
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Pregnant women should always
wear their safety belts. The lap belt
portion of a combination lap and
shoulder belt should be positioned
low across the hips below the belly
and worn as tight as comfort will
allow. The shoulder belt should be
positioned to cross the middle of
the shoulder and the center of the
chest.
Safety Belt Locking Modes
WARNING:After any vehicle collision, the safety belt system at
all passenger seating positions must be checked by an authorized
dealer to verify that the automatic locking retractor feature for child
seats is still functioning properly. In addition, all safety belts should be
checked for proper function.
WARNING:BELT AND RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MUST BE
REPLACED if the safety belt assembly automatic locking retractor
feature or any other safety belt function is not operating properly when
checked by an authorized dealer. Failure to replace the belt and retractor
assembly could increase the risk of injury in collisions.
All safety restraints in the vehicle are combination lap and shoulder
belts. The driver safety belt has the first type of locking mode, and the
front outboard passenger and rear seat safety belts have both types of
locking modes described as follows:
Vehicle Sensitive Mode
This is the normal retractor mode, which allows free shoulder belt length
adjustment to your movements and locking in response to vehicle
movement. For example, if the driver brakes suddenly or turns a corner
sharply, or the vehicle receives an impact of approximately 5 mph
(8 km/h) or more, the combination safety belts will lock to help reduce
forward movement of the driver and passengers.
In addition, the retractor is designed to lock if the webbing is pulled out
too quickly. If this occurs, let the belt retract slightly and pull webbing
out again in a slow and controlled manner.
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Proper Driver and Front Passenger Seating Adjustment
WARNING:National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) recommends a minimum distance of at least 10 inches (25
centimeters) between an occupant’s chest and the driver airbag module.
To properly position yourself away from the airbag:
•Move your seat to the rear as far as you can while still reaching the
pedals comfortably.
•
Recline the seat slightly (one or two degrees) from the upright position.
After all occupants have adjusted their seats and put on safety belts, it is
very important that they continue to sit properly. A properly seated
occupant sits upright, leaning against the seat back, and centered on the
seat cushion, with their feet comfortably extended on the floor. Sitting
improperly can increase the chance of injury in a crash event. For
example, if an occupant slouches, lies down, turns sideways, sits forward,
leans forward or sideways, or puts one or both feet up, the chance of
injury during a crash is greatly increased.
Children and Airbags
WARNING:Airbags can kill or injure a child in a child seat.
NEVER place a rear-facing child seat in front of an active airbag.
If you must use a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move the
seat all the way back.
Children must always be properly
restrained. Accident statistics
suggest that children are safer when
properly restrained in the rear
seating positions than in the front
seating position. Failure to follow
these instructions may increase the
risk of injury in a collision.
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Passenger Airbag ON/OFF Switch (if equipped)
WARNING:An airbag ON/OFF switch (if equipped) may have
been installed in this vehicle. Before driving, always look at the
face of the switch to be sure the switch is in the proper position in
accordance with these instructions and warnings. Failure to put the
switch in a proper position can increase the risk of serious injury or
death in a collision.
Note: The passenger airbag
ON/OFF switch (if equipped) may
be on vehicles with no rear seats
and a gross vehicle weight rating
(GVWR) greater than 8500 lb
(3856 kg). See theTowingchapter
for more information.
Turning the Passenger Airbag Off
WARNING:If the light fails to illuminate when the passenger air
bag switch is in the OFF position and the ignition switch is in
ON, contact your authorized dealer as soon as possible.
WARNING:In order to avoid inadvertent activation of the
switch, always remove the ignition key from the passenger air
bag ON/OFF switch.
OFF
ON OFFPASSENGER
AIRBAG
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