2013 NISSAN ALTIMA Owners Manual

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1-40Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system

WARNING
●Children may be severely injured or
killed when the front air bags, side air
bags or curtain air bags inflate if they
are not properly restrained. Pre-teens
and children should be properly re-
strained in the rear seat, if possible.
● Even with the NISSAN Advanced Air
Bag System, never install a rear-facing
child restraint in the front seat. An in-
flating front air bag could seriously in-
jure or kill your child. See “Child re-
straints” earlier in this section for
details.
WARNING
Front seat-mounted side-impact supple-
mental air bags and roof-mounted curtain
side-impact supplemental air bags:
●The side air bags and curtain air bags
ordinarily will not inflate in the event of
a frontal impact, rear impact, rollover or
lower severity side collision. Always
wear your seat belts to help reduce the
risk or severity of injury in various kinds
of accidents.
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Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system1-41

WARNING
●The seat belts, the side air bags and
curtain air bags are most effective when
you are sitting well back and upright in
the seat with both feet on the floor. The
side air bag and curtain air bag inflate
with great force. Do not allow anyone to
place their hand, leg or face near the
side air bag on the side of the seatback
of the front seat or near the side roof
rails. Do not allow anyone sitting in the
front seats or rear outboard seats to
extend their hand out of the window or
lean against the door. Some examples
of dangerous riding positions are
shown in the previous illustrations.
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1-42Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system

WARNING
●When sitting in the rear seat, do not
hold onto the seatback of the front seat.
If the side air bag inflates, you may be
seriously injured. Be especially careful
with children, who should always be
properly restrained. Some examples of
dangerous riding positions are shown
in the illustrations
● Do not use seat covers on the front
seatbacks. They may interfere with side
air bag inflation.
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Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system1-43

1. Top tether strap anchor
2. Rear seat belts
3. Roof-mounted curtain side-impactsupplemental air bag
4. Front seat-mounted side-impact supple-
mental air bag
5. Head restraints
6. Front seat belts
7. Side-impact pressure sensor (driver’s
side shown; passenger’s side similar)
8. Supplemental front-impact air bags
9. Seats
10. Occupant classification sensor (weight
sensor)
11. Seat belt with pretensioner
12. LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for
CHildren) system
NISSAN Advanced Air Bag System
(front seats)
WARNING
To ensure proper operation of the passen-
ger’s advanced air bag system, please ob-
serve the following items.
●Do not allow a passenger in the rear
seat to push or pull on the seatback
pocket.
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1-44Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system

●Do not place heavy loads heavier than
2.2 lb (1 kg) on the seatback, head re-
straint or in the seatback pocket.
● Do not store luggage behind the seat
that can press into the seatback.
● Do not position the front passenger
seat so it contacts the rear seat. If the
front seat does contact the rear seat,
the air bag system may determine a
sensor malfunction has occurred and
the front passenger air bag status light
may illuminate and the supplemental
air bag warning light may flash.
● If a forward facing child restraint is in-
stalled in the front passenger seat, do
not position the front passenger seat so
the child restraint contacts the instru-
ment panel. If the child restraint does
contact the instrument panel, the sys-
tem may determine the seat is occupied
and the passenger air bag may deploy
in a collision. Also the front passenger
air bag status light may not illuminate.
See “Child restraints” earlier in this sec-
tion for information about installing
and using child restraints.
● Confirm the operating condition with
the front passenger air bag status light. ●
If you notice that the front passenger air
bag status light is not operating as de-
scribed later in this section, please take
your vehicle to your NISSAN dealer to
check the occupant classification
system.
● Until you have confirmed with your
dealer that your passenger seat occu-
pant classification system is working
properly, position the occupants in the
rear seating positions.
This vehicle is equipped with the NISSAN Ad-
vanced Air Bag System for the driver and front
passenger seats. This system is designed to
meet certification requirements under U.S. regu-
lations. It is also permitted in Canada. However,
all of the information, cautions and warn-
ings in this manual still apply and must be
followed.
The driver supplemental front-impact air bag is
located in the center of the steering wheel. The
passenger supplemental front-impact air bag is
mounted in the dashboard above the glove box.
The front air bags are designed to inflate in higher
severity frontal collisions, although they may in-
flate if the forces in another type of collision are
similar to those of a higher severity frontal impact.
They may not inflate in certain frontal collisions. Vehicle damage (or lack of it) is not always an
indication of proper front air bag system opera-
tion.
The NISSAN Advanced Air Bag System has dual
stage inflators. It also monitors information from
the crash zone sensor, the Air bag Control Unit
(ACU) , seat belt buckle sensors and Occupant
Classification Sensor (weight sensor) . Inflator
operation is based on the severity of a collision
and seat belt usage for the driver. For the front
passenger, the occupant classification sensors
are also monitored. Based on information from
the sensors, only one front air bag may inflate in a
crash, depending on the crash severity and
whether the front occupants are belted or un-
belted. Additionally, the front passenger air bag
may be automatically turned OFF under some
conditions, depending on the weight detected on
the passenger seat and how the seat belt is used.
If the front passenger air bag is OFF, the passen-
ger air bag status light will be illuminated (if the
seat is unoccupied, the light will not be illumi-
nated, but the air bag will be off) . See “Front
passenger air bag and status light” later in this
section for further details. One front air bag inflat-
ing does not indicate improper performance of
the system.
Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system1-45

If you have any questions about your air bag
system, please contact NISSAN or your NISSAN
dealer. If you are considering modification of your
vehicle due to a disability, you may also contact
NISSAN. Contact information is contained in the
front of this Owner’s Manual.
When a front air bag inflates, a fairly loud noise
may be heard, followed by the release of smoke.
This smoke is not harmful and does not indicate a
fire. Care should be taken to not inhale it, as it may
cause irritation and choking. Those with a history
of a breathing condition should get fresh air
promptly.
Front air bags, along with the use of seat belts,
help to cushion the impact force on the face and
chest of the front occupants. They can help save
lives and reduce serious injuries. However, an
inflating front air bag may cause facial abrasions
or other injuries. Front air bags do not provide
restraint to the lower body.
Even with NISSAN advanced air bags, seat belts
should be correctly worn and the driver and pas-
senger seated upright as far as practical away
from the steering wheel or instrument panel. The
front air bags inflate quickly in order to help
protect the front occupants. Because of this, the
force of the front air bag inflating can increase the
risk of injury if the occupant is too close to, or is
against, the front air bag module during inflation.The front air bags deflate quickly after a collision.
The front air bags operate only when the
ignition switch is placed in the ON position.
After placing the ignition switch in the ON
position, the supplemental air bag warning
light illuminates. The supplemental air bag
warning light will turn off after about 7 sec-
onds if the system is operational.
Front passenger air bag and status light
WARNING
The front passenger air bag is designed to
automatically turn OFF under some con-
ditions. Read this section carefully to
learn how it operates. Proper use of the
seat, seat belt and child restraints is nec-
essary for most effective protection. Fail-
ure to follow all instructions in this
manual concerning the use of seats, seat
belts and child restraints can increase the
risk or severity of injury in an accident.
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1-46Safety—Seats, seat belts and supplemental restraint system

Status light
The front passenger air bag status light
is
located near the climate controls. After the igni-
tion switch is placed in the ONposition, the
front passenger air bag status light on the instru-
ment panel illuminates for about 7 seconds and
then turns off or remains illuminated depending
on the front passenger seat occupied status. The
light operates as follows:
● Unoccupied passenger’s seat: The
is
OFF and the front passenger air bag is OFF
and will not inflate in a crash.
● Passenger’s seat occupied by a small adult,
child or child restraint as outlined in this
section: The
illuminates to indicate
that the front passenger air bag is OFF and
will not inflate in a crash.
● Occupied passenger seat and the passen-
ger meet the conditions outlined in this sec-
tion: The light
is OFF to indicate that
the front passenger air bag is operational.
Front passenger air bag
The front passenger air bag is designed to auto-
matically turn OFF when the vehicle is operated
under some conditions as described below in
accordance with U.S. regulations. If the front
passenger air bag is OFF, it will not inflate in a crash. The driver air bag and other air bags in your
vehicle are not part of this system.
The purpose of the regulation is to help reduce
the risk of injury or death from an inflating air bag
to certain front passenger seat occupants, such
as children, by requiring the air bag to be auto-
matically turned OFF. Certain sensors are used
to meet the requirements.
The occupant classification sensors (weight sen-
sors) are on the seat cushion frame under the
front passenger seat and are designed to detect
an occupant and objects on the seat. For ex-
ample, if a child is in the front passenger seat, the
Advanced Air Bag System is designed to turn the
passenger air bag OFF in accordance with the
regulations. Also, if a child restraint of the type
specified in the regulations is on the seat, the
occupant classification sensors can detect it and
cause the air bag to turn OFF.
The front passenger seat belt sensor is designed
to detect if the seat belt is buckled. Based on the
weight on the seat detected by the occupant
classification sensor and the buckle state, the
Advanced Air Bag System determines whether
the front passenger air bag should be automati-
cally turned OFF as required by the regulations.
Front passenger seat adult occupants who are
properly seated and using the seat belt as out-
lined in this manual should not cause the passen-ger air bag to be automatically turned OFF. For
small adults it may be turned OFF, however if the
occupant takes his/her weight off the seat cush-
ion (for example, by not sitting upright, by sitting
on an edge of the seat, or by otherwise being out
of position) , this could cause the sensor to turn
the air bag OFF. Always be sure to be seated and
wearing the seat belt properly for the most effec-
tive protection by the seat belt and supplemental
air bag.
NISSAN recommends that pre-teens and chil-
dren be properly restrained in a rear seat.
NISSAN also recommends that appropriate child
restraints and booster seats be properly installed
in a rear seat. If this is not possible, the occupant
classification sensor is designed to operate as
described above to turn the front passenger air
bag OFF for specified child restraints as required
by the regulations. Failing to properly secure
child restraints and to use the ALR mode may
allow the restraint to tip or move in an accident or
sudden stop. This can also result in the passen-
ger air bag inflating in a crash instead of being
OFF. See “Child restraints” earlier in this section
for proper use and installation.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
passenger air bag is designed not to inflate in a
crash. However, heavy objects placed on the
seat could result in air bag inflation, because of
the object’s weight detected by the occupant
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