2013 FORD TRANSIT CONNECT seats

PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION
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 crash.
WARNING:It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area,
inside or outside of a vehicle. In a crash, 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:Always drive and ride with your seat back 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:All occupants of the vehicle, including the driver,
should always properly wear their safety belts, even when an airbag
supplemental restraint system is provided. Failure to properly wear your
safety belt could seriously increase the risk of injury or death.
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.
Safety Belts33
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

WARNING:When possible, all children 12 years old and under
should be properly restrained in a rear seating position. Failure
to follow this could seriously increase the risk of injury or death.
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. 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 Restraint Systemchapter.
The safety belt pretensioners are designed to activate in frontal,
near-frontal and side crashes, and in rollovers. 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. In frontal crashes, the safety
belt pretensioners can be activated alone or, if the crash is of sufficient
severity, together with the front airbags.
34Safety Belts
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

Restraint of Pregnant Women
WARNING:Always ride and drive with your seat back upright and
the safety belt properly fastened. The lap portion of the safety belt
should fit snug and be positioned low across the hips. The shoulder
portion of the safety belt should be positioned across the chest. Pregnant
women should also follow this practice. See the following figure.
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 crash, 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 crashes.
36Safety Belts
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

Proper Driver and Front Passenger Seating Adjustment
WARNING:The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
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. Properly seated
occupants sit upright, lean against the seat back, and center themselves
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 crash.
Supplementary Restraints System47
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

OccupantPass Airbag Off
Indicator LampPassenger Airbag
Empty Unlit Disabled
Small child Lit Disabled
Adult Unlit Enabled
Note:When the passenger airbag off light is illuminated, the passenger
(seat mounted) side airbag 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.
To know if the front passenger sensing system is operating
properly, refer toCrash Sensors and Airbag Indicatorlater in
this chapter.
If the airbag readiness lamp is lit, do the following:
The driver and 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.
•Driver or adult passengers should check for any objects lodged
underneath the front passenger seat or cargo interfering with the seat.
•Remove the obstruction(s) (if found).
•Restart the vehicle.
•Wait at least two minutes and verify that the airbag readiness lamp is
no longer illuminated
•If the airbag readiness lamp remains illuminated, this may or may/not
be a problem due to the front passenger sensing system.
DO NOT attempt to repair or service the system; take your vehicle
immediately to an authorized dealer.
50Supplementary Restraints System
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

If it is necessary to modify an advanced front airbag system to
accommodate a person with disabilities, contact the Ford Customer
Relationship Center at the phone number shown in theCustomer
Assistancesection of this Owner’s Manual.
SIDE AIRBAGS
WARNING:Do not place objects or mount equipment on or near
the airbag cover, on the side of the seat backs (of the front
seats), or in front seat areas that may come into contact with a
deploying airbag. Failure to follow these instructions may increase
the risk of personal injury in the event of a crash.
WARNING:Do not use accessory seat covers. The use of
accessory seat covers may prevent the deployment of the side
airbags and increase the risk of injury in an accident.
WARNING:Do not lean your head on the door. The side airbag
could injure you as it deploys from the side of the seat back.
WARNING:Do not attempt to service, repair, or modify the
airbag, its fuses or the seat cover on a seat containing an airbag,
as you could be seriously injured or killed. Contact your authorized
dealer as soon as possible.
WARNING:If the side airbag has deployed, the airbag will not
function again. The side airbag system (including the seat) must
be inspected and serviced by an authorized dealer. If the airbag is not
replaced, the unrepaired area will increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Supplementary Restraints System51
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

The side airbags are located on the outboard side of the seat backs of
the front seats. In certain lateral crashes, the airbag on the side affected
by the crash will be inflated, except that the passenger sensing system
will deactivate the passenger seat-mounted side airbag if it detects an
empty passenger seat.
The system consists of the
following:
•a tag on the seat back indicating
that side airbags are found on
your vehicle
•side airbags located inside the
seat back of the driver and front
passenger seats.
•crash sensors and monitoring system with readiness
indicator. SeeCrash Sensors and Airbag Indicatorlater in
this chapter.
•front passenger sensing system.
Note:The passenger sensing system will deactivate the passenger
seat-mounted side airbag if it detects an empty passenger seat.
The design and development of the side airbag system included
recommended testing procedures that were developed by a group of
automotive safety experts known as the Side Airbag Technical Working
Group. These recommended testing procedures help reduce the risk of
injuries related to the deployment of side airbags.
52Supplementary Restraints System
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)

ADJUSTING THE STEERING WHEEL
WARNING:Do not adjust the steering wheel when your vehicle
is moving.
Note:Make sure that you are sitting in the correct position. SeeSitting
in the Correct Positionin theSeatschapter.
1. Unlock the steering column.
2. Adjust the steering wheel to the
desired position.
3. Lock the steering column.
Steering Wheel65
2013 Transit Connect(tst)
Owners Guide gf, 2nd Printing, November 2012
USA(fus)