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 bought separately from your 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 and consulting your pediatrician to make sure your child
seat is appropriate for your child, and is compatible with and properly
installed in your vehicle. To locate a child seat fitting station and CPST,
contact the NHTSA toll free at 1-888-327-4236 or locate NHTSA on the
internet. 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, or locate your local St. John Ambulance
office by searching for St. John Ambulance on the internet, 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 ft. 9 in. (1.45 m) 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 ft. 9 in. (1.45 m) 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 seat back
upright.
•You are required by law to properly use safety seats for infants and
toddlers in the United States and Canada.
•Many states and provinces require that small children use approved
booster seats until they reach age eight, a height of 4 feet 9 inches
(1.45 meters) tall, or 80 pounds (36 kilograms). Check your local and
state or provincial laws for specific requirements about 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. SeeFront
Passenger Sensing Systemin theSupplementary Restraints System
chapter for more information.
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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 pounds (18 kilograms) 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 upon which the child seat is installed 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 your
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 your vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the
child from injury in a crash, which may result in serious injury or death.
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Note:The child seat must rest tightly against the vehicle seat upon
which it is installed. It may be necessary to lift or remove the head
restraint. See theSeatschapter for information on head restraints.
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 crash.
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 pounds (18 kilograms) and
80 pounds (36 kilograms) and upward to 100 pounds (45 kilograms) if
recommended by your child restraint manufacturer). Many state and
provincial laws require that children use approved booster seats until
they reach age eight (8), a height of 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 meters) tall,
or 80 pounds (36 kilograms).
Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions when the child is seated without a booster seat.
•Can the child sit all the way
back against their vehicle seat
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 your vehicle lap and
shoulder belt.
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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.
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Safety Belt Extension Assembly
WARNING:Do not use extensions to change the fit of the
shoulder belt across the torso.
If the safety belt is too short when fully extended, you can obtain a
safety belt extension assembly from an authorized dealer.
Use only extensions manufactured by the same supplier as the safety
belt. Manufacturer identification is located at the end of the webbing on
the label. Also, use the safety belt extension only if the safety belt is too
short for you when fully extended.
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 crash.
Adjust the height of the shoulder belt so the belt rests across the middle
of your shoulder.
To adjust the shoulder belt height
downward, press the button (A)
and slide the height adjuster (B)
upwards slightly and then down.
Release the button and pull down
on the height adjuster to make sure
it is locked in place.
To adjust the belt upward, slide the adjuster up. You do not need to push
the button to slide the adjuster upwards.
A
B
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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 seat back (if equipped), child safety seat LATCH
and tether anchors, and attaching hardware, should be inspected after a
crash. 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 crash be replaced. However, if the crash 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 crash should also be inspected
and replaced if either damage or improper operation is noted.
For proper care of soiled safety belts, seeCleaning the Interiorin the
Vehicle Carechapter.
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MANUAL SEATS
WARNING:Never adjust the driver’s seat or seat back when the
vehicle is moving.
WARNING:Rock the seat backward and forward after releasing
the lever to make sure that it is fully engaged.
Moving the Seat Backward and
Forward
Adjust the Height of the Driver’s
Seat
Recline Adjustment
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