2014 FORD ESCAPE remove seats

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 Seats (page
109).
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, 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 seated without a booster seat:
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• Can the child sit all the way back
against their 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 your vehicle lap and shoulder belt.
Types of Booster Seats
E68924
• Backless booster seats
17
Child Safety

If your backless booster seat has a
removable shield, remove the shield. If a
vehicle seating position has a low seat
back or no head restraint, a backless
booster seat may place your child's head
(as measured at the tops of the ears)
above the top of the seat. In this case,
move the backless booster to another
seating position with a higher seat back or
head restraint and lap and shoulder belts,
or consider using a high back booster seat.
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• High back booster seats
If, with a backless booster seat, you cannot
find a seating position that adequately
supports your child's head, a high back
booster seat would be a better choice.
Children and booster seats vary in size and
shape. Choose a booster that keeps the
lap belt low and snug across the hips,
never up across the stomach, and lets you
adjust the shoulder belt to cross the chest
and rest snugly near the center of the
shoulder. The following drawings compare
the ideal fit (center) to a shoulder belt
uncomfortably close to the neck and a
shoulder belt that could slip off the
shoulder. The drawings also show how the
lap belt should be low and snug across the
child's hips.
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18
Child Safety

4. Insert the belt tongue into the proper
buckle (the buckle closest to the
direction the tongue is coming from)
for that seating position until you hear
a snap and feel the latch engage. Make
sure the tongue is latched securely by
pulling on it.
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5. To put the retractor in the automatic
locking mode, grasp the shoulder
portion of the belt and pull downward
until all of the belt is pulled out.
Note:The automatic locking mode is
available on the front passenger and rear
seats.
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, unbuckle the
belt and repeat Steps 5 and 6.
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8. Remove remaining slack from the belt.
Force the seat down with extra weight,
for example, by pressing down or
kneeling on the child restraint while
pulling up on the shoulder belt in order
to force slack from the belt. This is
necessary to remove the remaining
slack that will exist once the extra
weight of the child is added to the child
restraint. It also helps to achieve the
proper snugness of the child seat to
your vehicle. Sometimes, a slight lean
toward the buckle will additionally help
to remove remaining slack from the
belt.
9. Attach the tether strap (if the child seat
is equipped).
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21
Child Safety

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Pregnant women should always wear their
safety belt. 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
WARNINGS
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.
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.
All safety restraints in the vehicle are
combination lap and shoulder belts. The
driver safety belt has the first type of
locking mode, and the front outboard
passenger and rear seat safety belts have
both types of locking modes described as
follows:
Vehicle Sensitive Mode
This is the normal retractor mode, which
allows free shoulder belt length
adjustment to your movements and
locking in response to vehicle movement.
For example, if the driver brakes suddenly
or turns a corner sharply, or the vehicle
receives an impact of approximately 5 mph
(8 km/h) or more, the combination safety
belts will lock to help reduce forward
movement of the driver and passengers.
In addition, the retractor is designed to lock
if the webbing is pulled out too quickly. If
this occurs, let the belt retract slightly and
pull webbing out again in a slow and
controlled manner.
Automatic Locking Mode
In this mode, the shoulder belt is
automatically pre-locked. The belt will still
retract to remove any slack in the shoulder
belt. The automatic locking mode is not
available on the driver safety belt.
When to Use the Automatic Locking
Mode
This mode should be used any time a child
safety seat, except a booster, is installed
in passenger front or rear seating positions.
Children 12 years old and under should be
properly restrained in a rear seating
position whenever possible. See Child
Safety (page 14).
28
Safety Belts

Passenger airbag Passenger airbag status
indicator Occupant
Disabled Unlit Empty
Disabled Lit Child
Enabled Unlit Adult
Note:When the passenger airbag status
indicator 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 is very
important that they continue to sit
properly. A properly seated occupant sits
upright, leaning against the seatback, 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 status of the passenger
airbag off indicator lamp is incorrect, check
for the following:
• Objects lodged underneath the seat
• Objects between the seat cushion and
the center console
• Objects hanging off the seatback
• Objects stowed in the seatback map
pocket
• 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 seatThe conditions listed above may cause the
weight of a properly seated occupant to
be incorrectly interpreted by the passenger
sensing system. The person in the front
passenger seat may appear heavier or
lighter due to the conditions described in
the list above.
Make sure the front passenger
sensing system is operating
properly. See Crash Sensors
and Airbag Indicator (page 42).
If the airbag readiness lamp is lit, do
the following:
The driver or adult passengers should
check for objects that lodged underneath
the front passenger seat, or cargo
interfering with the seat.
If there are lodged objects, or cargo is
interfering with the seat, 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.
39
Supplementary Restraints System

HINTS ON CONTROLLING THE
INTERIOR CLIMATE
General Hints
Note:Prolonged use of recirculated air may
cause the windows to fog up.
Note:You may feel a small amount of air
from the floor air vents regardless of the air
distribution setting.
Note:To reduce humidity build-up inside
your vehicle, do not drive with the system
switched off or with recirculated air always
switched on.
Note:Do not place objects under the front
seats as this may interfere with the airflow
to the rear seats.
Note:Remove any snow, ice or leaves from
the air intake area at the base of the
windshield.Manual Climate Control
Note:To reduce fogging of the windshield
during humid weather, adjust the air
distribution control to the windshield air
vents position. Increase the temperature
and fan speed to improve clearing, if
required.
Automatic Climate Control
Note:Adjusting the settings when your
vehicle interior is extremely hot or cold is
not necessary. The system automatically
adjusts to heat or cool the cabin to your
selected temperature as quickly as possible.
For the system to function efficiently, the
instrument panel and side air vents should
be fully open.
Note:At low ambient temperatures with
AUTO selected, the system directs airflow
to the windshield and side window vents
and fan may run at a slow speed until the
engine warms up.
Heating the Interior Quickly
Vehicle with automatic climate control Vehicle with manual climate control
Press the high fan speed button. Adjust the fan speed to the highest
speed setting. 1
Adjust the temperature control to the
highest setting. Adjust the temperature control to the
highest setting. 2
Press the floor button to distribute air to
the floor air vents. Adjust the air distribution control to the
floor air vents position. 3
104
Climate Control

WARNINGS
Install the head restraint properly to
help minimize the risk of neck injury
in the event of a crash.
Note:Adjust the seatback to an upright
driving position before adjusting the head
restraint. Adjust the head restraint so that
the top of it is level with the top of your head
and as far forward as possible. Make sure
that you remain comfortable. If you are
extremely tall, adjust the head restraint to
its highest position.
Front seat head restraint
E138642
Rear seat outboard head restraints
E138643
Rear center head restraint
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The head restraints consist of:
an energy absorbing head
restraint A
two steel stems B
guide sleeve adjust and unlock
button C
guide sleeve unlock and remove
button D
fold button E
Adjusting the Head Restraint
Raising the Head Restraint
Pull the head restraint up.
Lowering the Head Restraint
1. Press and hold button C.
2. Push the head restraint down.
Removing the Head Restraint
1. Pull the head restraint up until it
reaches its highest position.
2. Press and hold buttons C and D.
3. Pull the head restraint up.
110
Seats

WARNINGS
On vehicles equipped with
seat-mounted airbags, do not use
chemical solvents or strong
detergents. Such products could
contaminate the side airbag system and
affect performance of the side airbag in a
collision.
For fabric, carpets, cloth seats, safety belts
and seats equipped with side airbags:
• Remove dust and loose dirt with a
vacuum cleaner.
• Remove light stains and soil with
Motorcraft Professional Strength
Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner.
• If grease or tar is present on the
material, spot-clean the area first with
Motorcraft Spot and Stain Remover. In
Canada, use Motorcraft Multi-Purpose
Cleaner.
• If a ring forms on the fabric after spot
cleaning, clean the entire area
immediately (but do not oversaturate)
or the ring will set.
• Do not use household cleaning
products or glass cleaners, which can
stain and discolor the fabric and affect
the flame retardant abilities of the seat
materials.
CLEANING THE INSTRUMENT
PANEL AND INSTRUMENT
CLUSTER LENS
WARNING
Do not use chemical solvents or
strong detergents when cleaning the
steering wheel or instrument panel
to avoid contamination of the airbag
system.
Clean the instrument panel and cluster
lens with a clean, damp, white cotton
cloth, then use a clean and dry white
cotton cloth to dry these areas.
• Avoid cleaners or polishes that increase
the gloss of the upper portion of the
instrument panel. The dull finish in this
area helps protect you from
undesirable windshield reflection.
• Be certain to wash or wipe your hands
clean if you have been in contact with
certain products such as insect
repellent and suntan lotion in order to
avoid possible damage to the interior
painted surfaces.
• Do not use household or glass cleaners
as these may damage the finish of the
instrument panel, interior trim and
cluster lens.
• Do not allow air fresheners and hand
sanitizers to spill onto interior surfaces.
If a spill occurs, wipe off immediately.
Damage may not be covered by your
warranty.
If a staining liquid like coffee or juice has
been spilled on the instrument panel or on
interior trim surfaces, clean as follows:
1. Wipe up spilled liquid using a clean,
white, cotton cloth.
2. Wipe the surface with a damp, clean,
white cotton cloth. For more thorough
cleaning, use a mild soap and water
solution. If the spot cannot be
completely cleaned by this method,
the area may be cleaned using a
commercially available cleaning
product designed for automotive
interiors.
3. If necessary, apply more soap and
water solution or cleaning product to
a clean, white, cotton cloth and press
the cloth onto the soiled area. Allow
this to set at room temperature for 30
minutes.
230
Vehicle Care