GENERAL INFORMATION
See the following sections for directions on how to properly use safety
restraints for children.
WARNING:Always make sure your child is secured properly in a
device that is appropriate for their height, age and weight. Child
safety restraints must be purchased separately from the vehicle. Failure
to follow these instructions and guidelines may result in an increased
risk of serious injury or death to your child.
WARNING:All children are shaped differently. The
recommendations for safety restraints are based on probable child
height, age and weight thresholds from NHTSA and other safety
organizations, or are the minimum requirements of law. Ford recommends
checking with a NHTSA Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician
(CPST) and consult your pediatrician to make sure your child seat is
appropriate for your child, and is compatible with and properly installed
in the vehicle. To locate a child seat fitting station and CPST, contact the
NHTSA toll free at 1-888-327-4236 or on the internet at
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov. In Canada, check with your local St. John
Ambulance office for referral to a CPST or for further information,
contact your provincial ministry of transportation, your local St. John
Ambulance office at http://www.sfa.ca, or Transport Canada at
1–800–333–0371 (http://www.tc.gc.ca). Failure to properly restrain
children in safety seats made especially for their height, age, and weight
may result in an increased risk of serious injury or death to your child.
Recommendations for Safety Restraints for Children
Child size, height, weight, or
ageRecommended
restraint type
Infants
or
toddlersChildren weighing 40 lb (18 kg) or
less (generally age four or
younger).Use a child safety seat
(sometimes called an
infant carrier,
convertible seat, or
toddler seat).
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Recommendations for Safety Restraints for Children
Child size, height, weight, or
ageRecommended
restraint type
Small
childrenChildren who have outgrown or no
longer properly fit in a child safety
seat (generally children who are
less than 4 feet 9 inches
(1.45 meters) tall, are greater than
age four (4) and less than age
twelve (12), and between 40 lb
(18 kg) and 80 lb (36 kg) and
upward to 100 lb (45 kg) if
recommended by your child
restraint manufacturer).Use a belt-positioning
booster seat.
Larger
childrenChildren who have outgrown or no
longer properly fit in a
belt-positioning booster seat
(generally children who are at
least 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 meters)
tall or greater than 80 lb (36 kg)
or 100 lb (45 kg) if recommended
by child restraint manufacturer).Use a vehicle safety
belt having the lap belt
snug and low across the
hips, shoulder belt
centered across the
shoulder and chest, and
seatback upright.
•You are required by law to properly use safety seats for infants and
toddlers in the U.S. and Canada.
•Many states and provinces require that small children use approved
booster seats until they reach age eight, a height of 4 ft 9 in.
(1.45 meters) tall, or 80 lb (36 kg). Check your local and state or
provincial laws for specific requirements regarding the safety of
children in your vehicle.
•When possible, always properly restrain children twelve (12) years of
age and under in a rear seating position of your vehicle. Accident
statistics suggest that children are safer when properly restrained in
the rear seating positions than in a front seating position.
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CHILD SEATS
Use a child safety seat (sometimes
called an infant carrier, convertible
seat, or toddler seat) for Infants,
toddlers or children weighing 40 lb
(18 kg) or less (generally age four
or younger)
CHILD SEAT POSITIONING
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
vehicle seat all the way back. When possible, all children age 12 and
under should be properly restrained in a rear seating position. If all
children cannot be seated and restrained properly in a rear seating
position, properly restrain the largest child in the front seat.
WARNING:Always carefully follow the instructions and
warnings provided by the manufacturer of any child restraint to
determine if the restraint device is appropriate for your child’s size,
height, weight, or age. Follow the child restraint manufacturer’s
instructions and warnings provided for installation and use in
conjunction with the instructions and warnings provided by the vehicle
manufacturer. A safety seat that is improperly installed or utilized, is
inappropriate for your child’s height, age, or weight or does not
properly fit the child may increase the risk of serious injury or death.
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, which may result in serious injury or
death.
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BOOSTER SEATS
WARNING:Never place, or allow a child to place, the shoulder
belt under a child’s arm or behind the back because it reduces
the protection for the upper part of the body and may increase the risk
of injury or death in a collision.
Use a belt-positioning booster seat for children who have outgrown or no
longer properly fit in a child safety seat (generally children who are less
than 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 meters) tall, are greater than age four (4) and
less than age twelve (12), and between 40 lb (18 kg) and 80 lb (36 kg)
and upward to 100 lb (45 kg) if recommended by your child restraint
manufacturer). Many state and provincial laws require that children use
approved booster seats until they reach age eight, a height of 4 feet
9 inches (1.45 meters) tall, or 80 lb (36 kg).
Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions when seated without a booster seat:
•Can the child sit all the way back
against the vehicle seat back with
knees bent comfortably at the
edge of the seat cushion?
•Can the child sit without
slouching?
•Does the lap belt rest low across the hips?
•Is the shoulder belt centered on the shoulder and chest?
•Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
Always use booster seats in conjunction with the vehicle lap/shoulder
belt.
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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.
•Belt tension sensor at the front outboard passenger seating position.
•Safety belt warning light and chime. Refer toSafety belt
warning light and indicator chimelater in this chapter.
•Crash sensors and monitoring system with readiness
indicator. Refer toCrash sensors and airbag indicatorin
theSupplemental Restraint Systemchapter.
The safety belt pretensioners at the front seating positions are designed
to tighten the safety belts when activated. In frontal and near-frontal
collisions, the safety belt pretensioners may be activated alone or, if the
collision is of sufficient severity, together with the front airbags. The
pretensioners may also activate when a side curtain airbag is deployed.
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SAFETY BELT HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT
WARNING:Position the safety belt height adjusters so that the
belt rests across the middle of your shoulder. Failure to adjust
the safety belt properly could reduce the effectiveness of the safety belt
and increase the risk of injury in a collision.
Adjust the height of the shoulder
belt so the belt rests across the
middle of your shoulder.
To adjust the shoulder belt height,
pull the button and slide the height
adjuster up or down. Release the
button and pull down on the height
adjuster to make sure it is locked in
place.
SAFETY BELT WARNING LIGHT AND INDICATOR CHIME
This lamp illuminates and an audible warning will sound if the
driver’s safety belt has not been fastened when the vehicle’s
ignition is turned on.
Conditions of operation
If... Then...
The driver’s safety belt is not
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the on
position...The safety belt warning light
illuminates 1-2 minutes and the
warning chime sounds 4-8 seconds.
The driver’s safety belt is
buckled while the indicator
light is illuminated and the
warning chime is sounding...The safety belt warning light and
warning chime turn off.
The driver’s safety belt is
buckled before the ignition
switch is turned to the on
position...The safety belt warning light and
indicator chime remain off.
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2. Wait until the safety belt warning light turns off (approximately one
minute).
•Step 3 must be completed within 30 seconds after the safety belt
warning light turns off.
3. For the seating position being disabled, buckle then unbuckle the
safety belt three times at a moderate speed, ending in the unbuckled
state.
•After Step 3, the safety belt warning light will be turned on for three
seconds.
4. Within approximately seven seconds of the light turning off, buckle
then unbuckle the safety belt.
•This will disable the Belt-Minder feature for that seating position if it
is currently enabled.
•This will enable the Belt-Minderfeature for that seating position if it
is currently disabled.
CHILD RESTRAINT AND SAFETY BELT MAINTENANCE
Inspect the vehicle safety belts and child safety seat systems periodically
to make sure they work properly and are not damaged. Inspect the
vehicle and child seat safety belts to make sure there are no nicks, tears
or cuts. Replace if necessary. All vehicle safety belt assemblies, including
retractors, buckles, front safety belt buckle assemblies, buckle support
assemblies (slide bar-if equipped), shoulder belt height adjusters (if
equipped), shoulder belt guide on seatback (if equipped), child safety
seat LATCH and tether anchors, and attaching hardware, should be
inspected after a collision. Read the child restraint manufacturer’s
instructions for additional inspection and maintenance information
specific to the child restraint. Ford Motor Company recommends that all
safety belt assemblies in use in vehicles involved in a collision be
replaced. However, if the collision was minor and an authorized dealer
finds that the belts do not show damage and continue to operate
properly, they do not need to be replaced. Safety belt assemblies not in
use during a collision should also be inspected and replaced if either
damage or improper operation is noted.
For proper care of soiled safety belts, refer toCleaning the Interiorin
theVehicle Carechapter.
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FRONT SEATS
WARNING:Do not adjust the driver’s seat or seatback when
your vehicle is moving.
WARNING:Rock the seat backward and forward after releasing
the lever to make sure that it is fully engaged.
Moving the Seats Backward and
Forward
Adjusting the Height of the
Driver’s Seat
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