Transporting children safelyVehicle equipment
All standard, country-specific and optional
equipment that is offered in the model series is
described in this chapter. Therefore, equipmentis also described that is not available in a vehi‐
cle, e. g., because of the selected optional
equipment or country variant. This also applies
for safety-related functions and systems.
The right place for children
Note
Children in the vehicle
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle; otherwise, they could endanger them‐
selves and other persons, e.g., by opening the
doors. ◀
Children should always be in the rear Accident research shows that the safest place
for children is in the back seat.
Transporting children in the rear
Only transport children younger than
13 years of age or shorter than 5 ft/150 cm in
the rear in child restraint fixing systems pro‐
vided in accordance with the age, weight and
size of the child; otherwise, there is an in‐
creased risk of injury in an accident.
Children 13 years of age or older must wear a
safety belt as soon as a suitable child restraint fixing system can no longer be used, due to
their age, weight and size. ◀
Children on the front passenger seat Should it ever be necessary to use a child re‐
straint fixing system in the front passenger
seat, make sure that the front, knee and side
airbags on the front passenger side are deacti‐
vated. Automatic deactivation of front passen‐
ger airbags, refer to page 93.Note
Deactivated front passenger airbags
If a child restraint fixing system is used in
the front passenger seat, the front passenger
airbags must be deactivated; otherwise, there
is an increased risk of injury to the child when
the airbags are triggered, even with a child re‐ straint fixing system. ◀
Installing child re‐
straint fixing systems
Hints Manufacturer's information for child re‐straint fixing systems
To select, mount and use child restraint fixing
systems, observe the information provided by
the system manufacturer; otherwise, the pro‐
tective effect can be impaired. ◀
Ensuring the stability of the child seat
When installing child restraint fixing sys‐
tems, make sure that the child seat is securely
fastened to the backrest of the seat. The angle
of the backrest may need to be adjusted and,
where necessary, the headrest height may also
need to be adjusted, or if possible removed.
Make sure that all backrests are securely
locked. Otherwise, the stability of the child seat
is limited, and there is an increased risk of in‐Seite 55Transporting children safelyCONTROLS55
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jury because of unexpected movement of the
rear seat backrest. ◀
On the front passenger seat
Deactivating airbags
After installing a child restraint fixing system in
the front passenger seat, make sure that the
front, knee and side airbags on the front pas‐
senger side are deactivated.
Deactivate the front passenger airbags auto‐
matically, refer to page 93.
Deactivating the front passenger airbags If a child restraint fixing system is used in
the front passenger seat, the front passenger
airbags must be deactivated; otherwise, there
is an increased risk of injury to the child when
the airbags are triggered, even with a child re‐
straint fixing system. ◀
Seat position and height
Before installing a child restraint fixing system,
move the front passenger seat as far back as possible and adjust its height to the highest po‐
sition to obtain the best possible position for
the belt and to offer optimal protection in the event of an accident.
If the upper fixing point of the safety belt is lo‐
cated before the belt guide of the child seat,
move the passenger seat carefully forward until
the best possible belt guide position is reached.Child seat security
The rear safety belts and the front passenger
safety belt can be locked against pulling out for
mounting the child restraint fixing systems.
Locking the safety belt
1.Pull out the belt webbing completely.2.Secure the child restraint fixing system with
the belt.3.Allow the belt webbing to be pulled in and
pull it taut against the child restraint fixing
system. The safety belt is locked.
Unlocking the safety belt
1.Unbuckle the belt buckle.2.Remove the child restraint fixing system.3.Allow the belt webbing to be pulled in com‐
pletely.
LATCH child restraint fixing system
LATCH: Lower Anchors and Tether for Children.
Note Follow manufacturer's information for
LATCH child restraint fixing systems
To mount and use the LATCH child restraint fix‐
ing systems, observe the operating and safety
information from the system manufacturer;otherwise, the level of protection may be re‐
duced. ◀
Mounts for the lower LATCH anchors
The lower anchors may be used to attach the
CRS to the vehicle seat up to a combined child
and CRS weight of 65 lb when the child is re‐
strained by the internal harnesses.Seite 56CONTROLSTransporting children safely56
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When there is a malfunction, have the air‐
bag system checked immediately
When there is a malfunction, have the airbag
system checked immediately; otherwise, there
is a risk that the system does not function as
expected in the event of an accident despite
corresponding severity of the accident. ◀
Automatic deactivation of the front
passenger airbags
The system determines whether the front pas‐
senger seat is occupied by measuring the re‐
sistance of the human body.
The front, knee, and side airbag on the front
passenger side are activated or deactivated ac‐
cordingly.
Leave feet in the footwell
Make sure that the front passenger keeps
his or her feet in the footwell; otherwise, the
front passenger airbags may not function prop‐
erly. ◀
Child restraint fixing system in the front
passenger seat
Before transporting a child on the front passen‐
ger seat, refer to the safety notes and instruc‐
tions under Children on the front passenger
seat. ◀
Malfunction of the automatic deactivation system
When transporting older children and adults,
the front passenger airbags may be deactivated
in certain sitting positions. In this case, the indi‐
cator lamp for the front passenger airbags
lights up.
In this case, change the sitting position so that
the front passenger airbags are activated and
the indicator lamp goes out.
If it is not possible to activate the airbags, have
the person sit in the rear.
To make sure that the occupied seat cushion
can be evaluated correctly▷Do not attach covers, cushions, ball mats or
other items to the front passenger seat un‐
less they are specifically recommended by
the manufacturer of your vehicle.▷Do not place any electronic devices on the
passenger seat if a child restraint system is
to be installed on it.▷Do not place objects under the seat that
could press against the seat from below.▷No moisture in or on the seat.
Indicator lamp for the front passenger
airbags
The indicator lamp for the front passenger air‐
bags indicates the operating state of the front
passenger airbags.
The lamp indicates whether the airbags are ac‐
tivated or deactivated.
▷The indicator lamp lights up
when a child who is properly
seated in a child restraint fix‐
ing system intended for that
purpose is detected on the
seat or the seat is empty. The
airbags on the front passen‐
ger side are not activated.▷The indicator lamp does not light up when,
for example, a correctly seated person of
sufficient size is detected on the seat. The
airbags on the front passenger side are ac‐
tivated.Seite 93SafetyCONTROLS93
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