2013 FORD FLEX weight

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.
Child Safety17
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

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).
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.
18Child Safety
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

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.
WARNING:Never use pillows, books, or towels to boost a child.
They can slide around and increase the likelihood of injury or death
in a collision.
Child Safety19
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

WARNING:Always restrain an unoccupied child seat or booster
seat. These objects may become projectiles in a collision or
sudden stop, which may increase the risk of serious injury.
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.
WARNING:Do not leave children, unreliable adults, or pets
unattended in your vehicle.
Restraint
TypeChild
WeightUse any attachment method as indicated
below by X
LATCH
(lower
anchors
and
top
tether
anchor)LATCH
(lower
anchors
only)Safety
belt
and
top
tether
anchorSafety
belt and
LATCH
(lower
anchors
and top
tether
anchor)Safety
belt
only
Rear
facing
child seatUp to
48 lb
(21 kg)XX
Forward
facing
child seatUp to
48 lb
(21 kg)XXX
Forward
facing
child seatOver
48 lb
(21 kg)XX
Note:The child seat must rest tightly against the vehicle seat. It may be
necessary to lift or remove the head restraint. See theSeatschapter for
information on head restraints.
20Child Safety
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

6. Allow the belt to retract to remove slack. The belt will click as it
retracts to indicate it is in the automatic locking mode.
7. Try to pull the belt out of the retractor to make sure the retractor is in
the automatic locking mode (you should not be able to pull more belt
out). If the retractor is not locked, repeat Steps 5 and 6.
8. Remove remaining slack from the belt. Force the seat down with extra
weight, e.g., by pressing down or kneeling on the child restraint while
pulling up on the shoulder belt (for standard safety belt) or pulling down
on the lap belt (for inflatable safety belt) in order to force slack from the
belt. This is necessary to remove the remaining slack that will exist once
the additional weight of the child is added to the child restraint. It also
helps to achieve the proper snugness of the child seat to the vehicle.
Sometimes, a slight lean towards the buckle will additionally help to
remove remaining slack from the belt.
•Standard safety belt
•Inflatable safety belt
9. Attach the tether strap (if the child seat is equipped). Refer to
Installing child safety seats with tether strapslater in this chapter.
28Child Safety
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

FRONT PASSENGER SENSING SYSTEM
WARNING:Even with Advanced Restraints Systems, children 12
and under should be properly restrained in a rear seating position.
WARNING:Sitting improperly out of position or with the seat back
reclined too far can take off weight from the seat cushion and
affect the decision of the front passenger sensing system, resulting in
serious injury or death in a crash.
Always sit upright against your seatback, with your feet on the floor.
WARNING:To reduce the risk of possible serious injury:
Do not stow objects in seat back map pocket (if equipped) or hang
objects off seat back if a child is in the front passenger seat.
Do not place objects underneath the front passenger seat or between the
seat and the center console (if equipped).
Check the “passenger airbag off” or “pass airbag off” indicator lamp for
proper airbag status.
Failure to follow these instructions may interfere with the passenger seat
sensing system.
WARNING:Any alteration/modification to the front passenger seat
may affect the performance of the front passenger sensing system.
This system works with sensors that are part of the front passenger’s
seat and safety belt to detect the presence of a properly-seated occupant
and determine if the front passenger’s frontal airbag should be enabled
(may inflate) or not.
The front passenger sensing system
uses a passenger airbag status
indicator which will illuminate
indicating that the front passenger
frontal airbag is either ON (enabled)
or OFF (disabled). The indicator
lamp is located in the center stack
of the instrument panel.
Note:The passenger airbag status indicator OFF and ON lamps will
illuminate for a short period of time when the ignition is first turned on
to confirm it is functional.
Supplementary Restraints System53
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Note:When the passenger airbag status indicator OFF lamp is
illuminated, the passenger side airbag (seat mounted) may be disabled to
avoid the risk of airbag deployment injuries.
After all occupants have adjusted their seats and put on safety belts, it’s
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.
If you think that the state of the passenger airbag status indicator lamp is
incorrect, check for the following:
•Objects lodged underneath the seat
•Objects between the seat cushion and the center console (if equipped)
•Objects hanging off the seat back
•Objects stowed in the seatback map pocket (if equipped)
•Objects placed on the occupant’s lap
•Cargo interference with the seat
•Other passengers pushing or pulling on the seat
•Rear passenger feet and knees resting or pushing on the seat
The conditions listed above may cause the weight of a properly seated
occupant to be incorrectly interpreted by the front passenger sensing
system. The person in the front passenger seat may appear heavier or
lighter due to the conditions described in the previous list.
To know if the front passenger sensing system is operating
properly, refer toCrash sensors and Airbag Indicatorlater in
this chapter.
If the airbag readiness light is lit, do the following:
The driver and/or adult passengers should check for any objects that may
be lodged underneath the front passenger seat or cargo interfering with
the seat.
If objects are lodged and/or cargo is interfering with the seat; please take
the following steps to remove the obstruction:
•Pull the vehicle over.
•Turn the vehicle off.
Supplementary Restraints System55
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

SITTING IN THE CORRECT POSITION
WARNING:Sitting improperly out of position or with the
seatback reclined too far can take off weight from the seat
cushion and affect the decision of the passenger sensing system,
resulting in serious injury or death in a crash. Always sit upright against
your seatback, with your feet on the floor.
WARNING:Do not recline the seatback as this can cause the
occupant to slide under the seat’s safety belt, resulting in severe
personal injury in the event of a collision.
WARNING:Do not place objects higher than the seatbacks to
reduce the risk of injury in a collision or during heavy braking or
when stopping suddenly.
When you use them properly, the
seat, head restraint, safety belt and
airbags will provide optimum
protection in the event of a collision.
We recommend that you follow
these guidelines:
•Sit in an upright position with the
base of your spine as far back as
possible.
•Do not recline the seatback more than 30 degrees.
•Adjust the head restraint so that the top of it is level with the top of
your head and as far forward as possible, remaining comfortable.
•Keep sufficient distance between yourself and the steering wheel. We
recommend a minimum of 10 inches (250 mm) between your
breastbone and the airbag cover.
•Hold the steering wheel with your arms slightly bent.
•Bend your legs slightly so that you can press the pedals fully.
•Position the shoulder strap of the safety belt over the center of your
shoulder and position the lap strap tightly across your hips.
Make sure that your driving position is comfortable and that you can
maintain full control of your vehicle.
Seats163
2013 Flex(471)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)