2014 SUBARU TRIBECA warning

Seatbelts
&Seatbelt safety tips
WARNING
.All persons in the vehicle shouldfasten their seatbelts BEFOREthe vehicle starts to move. Other-wise, the possibility of seriousinjury becomes greater in theevent of a sudden stop or acci-dent.
.All belts should fit snugly in orderto provide full restraint. Loosefitting belts are not as effective inpreventing or reducing injury.
.Each seatbelt is designed tosupport only one person. Neveruse a single belt for two or morepersons–even children.Other-wise, in an accident, seriousinjury or death could result.
.Replace all seatbelt assembliesincluding retractors and attach-ing hardware worn by occupantsof a vehicle that has been in aserious accident. The entire as-sembly should be replaced evenif damage is not obvious.
.Put children aged 12 and under in
a rear seat properly restrained atall times. The SRS airbag de-ploys with considerable speedand force and can injure or evenkill children, especially if they are12 years of age and under andare not restrained or improperlyrestrained. Because children arelighter and weaker than adults,their risk of being injured fromdeployment is greater. Conse-quently, we strongly recommendthat ALL children (includingthose in child seats and thosethat have outgrown child re-straint devices) sit in a REARseat properly restrained at alltimes in a child restraint deviceor in a seatbelt, whichever isappropriate for the child’s heightand weight.
Always secure ALL types of childrestraint devices (including for-ward facing child seats) in one ofthe rear seating positions recom-mended in this Owner’s Manual.
NEVERINSTALL A REARWARDFA C I N G C H I L D S E AT I N T H EFRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKSSERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TOTHE CHILD BY PLACING THECHILD’S HEAD TOO CLOSE TO
THE SRS AIRBAG.
According to accident statistics,children are safer when properlyrestrained in the rear seatingpositions than in the front seat-ing positions. For instructionsand precautions concerning thechild restraint system, refer to“Child restraint systems”F1-29.
Your vehicle is equipped with a crashsensing and diagnostic module, which willrecord the use of the seatbelt(s) by thedriver and front passenger when any ofthe SRS frontal, side and curtain airbagsdeploy.
!Infants or small children
Use a child restraint system that issuitable for your vehicle. Refer to“Childrestraint systems”F1-29.
!Children
If a child is too big for a child restraintsystem, the child should sit in the rear seatand be restrained using the seatbelts.According to accident statistics, childrenare safer when properly restrained in therear seating positions than in the frontseating positions.Never allow a child tostand up or kneel on the seat.
If the shoulder portion of the belt crosses
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1-18Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
the face or neck, adjust the shoulder beltanchor height (window-side seating posi-tions only) and then if necessary move thechild closer to the belt buckle to helpprovide a good shoulder belt fit. Care mustbe taken to securely place the lap belt aslow as possible on the hips and not on thechild’s waist. If the shoulder portion of thebelt cannot be properly positioned, a childrestraint system should be used. Neverplacethe shoulder belt under the child’sarm or behind the child’s back.
!Expectant mothers
Expectant mothers also need to use theseatbelts. They should consult their doctorfor specific recommendations. The lap beltshouldbe worn securely and as low aspossible over the hips, not over the waist.
&Emergency Locking Retrac-
tor (ELR)
The driver’s seatbelt has an EmergencyLocking Retractor (ELR).
The emergency locking retractor allowsnormal body movement but the retractorlocks automatically during a sudden stop,impact or if you pull the belt very quicklyout of the retractor.
&Automatic/Emergency Lock-
ing Retractor (A/ELR)
Each passenger’s seatbelt has an Auto-matic/Emergency Locking Retractor (A/ELR). The Automatic/Emergency LockingRetractor normally functions as an Emer-gency Locking Retractor (ELR). The A/ELR has an additional locking mode,“Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR)mode”, intended to secure a child restraintsystem.
The ALR mode functions as follows.
When the seatbelt is once drawn outcompletely and is then retracted evenslightly, the retractor locks the seatbelt inthat position and the seatbelt cannot beextended. As the belt is rewinding, clickswill be heard which indicate the retractorfunctions as an ALR. When the seatbelt isretracted fully, the ALR mode is canceledand the ELR mode is restored.
When securing a child restraint system onthe rear passenger’s seats by using aseatbelt, the seatbelt must be changedover to the Automatic Locking Retractor(ALR) mode. For instructions on how toinstall the child restraint system using aseatbelt, refer to“Installing child restraintsystems with A/ELR seatbelt”F1-32.
When the child restraint system is re-moved, make sure that the retractor isrestored to the Emergency Locking Re-tractor (ELR) mode by allowing the seat-belt to retract fully.
&Seatbelt warning light
and chime
Refer to“Seatbelt warning light andchime”F3-10.
&Fastening the seatbelt
WARNING
.Never use a belt that is twisted orreversed. In an accident, this canincrease therisk or severity ofinjury.
.Keep the lap belt as low aspossible on your hips. In a colli-sion, this spreads the force of thelap belt over stronger hip bones

instead of across the weakerabdomen.
.Seatbelts provide maximum re-straint when the occupant sitswell back and upright in the seat.To r e d u c e t h e r i s k o f s l i d i n gunder the seatbelt in a collision,thefront seatbacks should bealways used in the upright posi-tion while the vehicle is running.If the front seatbacks are notused in the upright position in acollision, the risk of sliding underthe lap belt and of the lap beltsliding up over the abdomen willincrease, and both can result inserious internal injury or death.
.Do not put cushions or any othermaterials between occupantsand seatbacks or seat cushions.If you do so, the risk of slidingunder the lap belt and of the lapbelt sliding up over the abdomenwill increase, and both can resultin serious internal injury ordeath.
WARNING
Never place the shoulder belt underthe arm or behind the back. If anaccident occurs, this can increasethe risk or severity of injury.
CAUTION
Metallic parts of the seatbelt canbecome very hot in a vehicle thathas been closed up in sunny weath-er; they could burn an occupant. Donot touch such hot parts until theycool.
!Front seatbelts
1. Adjust the seat position according tothe following procedure.
Driver’s seat:Adjust the seatback to theupright position. Move the seatback as farfrom the steering wheel as practical whilestill maintaining full vehicle control.
Front passenger’s seat:Adjust the seat-back to the upright position. Move the seatas far back as possible.
2. Sit well back in the seat.
3. Pick up the tongue plate and pull thebelt out slowly. Do not let it get twisted. Ifthe belt stops before reaching the buckle,return the beltslightly and pull it out moreslowly. If the belt still cannot be unlocked,let the belt retract slightly after giving it astrong pull, then pull it out slowly again.
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1-20Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
4. Insert the tongue plate into the buckleuntil you hear a click.
5. To make the lap part tight, pull up onthe shoulderbelt.
6. Place the lap belt as low as possibleon your hips, not on your waist.
!Adjusting the front seat shoulderbelt anchor height
The shoulderbelt anchor height should beadjusted to the position best suited for thedriver/front passenger. Always adjust theanchor height so that the shoulder beltpasses over the middle of the shoulderwithout touching the neck.
To raise:
Slide the anchor up.
To lower:
Push the release button and slide theanchor down.
Pull down on the anchor to make sure thatit is locked in place.
WARNING
When wearing the seatbelts, makesure the shoulder portion of thewebbing does not pass over yourneck. If it does, adjust the seatbeltanchor to a lower position. Placingthe shoulder belt over the neck mayresult in neck injury during suddenbrakingor in a collision.
!Unfastening the seatbelt
Push the button on the buckle.
Before closing the door, make sure thatthe belts are retracted properly to avoidcatching the belt webbing in the door.

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WARNING
When wearing the seatbelts, makesure the shoulder portion of thewebbing does not pass over yourneck. If it does, adjust the seatbeltanchor to a lower position. Placingthe shoulder belt over the neck mayresult in neck injury during suddenbrakingor in a collision.
!Unfastening the seatbelt
Push the button on the buckle.
Before closing the door, make sure thatthe belts are retracted properly to avoidcatching the belt webbing in the door.
NOTE
1) Holder
With the seatback folded, attach thetongue plate of each rear/second-rowseatbeltto the corresponding holder.Do the same also before someone getsinto the third-row seat.
!Second-row center seatbelt
1) Center seatbelt tongue plate2) Connector (tongue)3) Connector (buckle)4) Center seatbelt buckle

WARNING
Fastening the seatbelt with the web-bing twisted can increase the risk orseverity of injury in an accident.When fastening the belt after it ispulled out from the retractor, espe-cially when inserting the connec-tor’s tongue plate into the matingbuckle (on right-hand side), alwayscheck that the webbing is nottwisted.
WARNING
Be sure to fasten both tongue platesto the respective buckles. If theseatbelt is used only as a shoulder
belt (with the connector’s tongueplate not fastened to the connec-tor’s buckle on the right-hand side),it cannot properly restrain the wear-er in position in an accident, possi-bly resulting in serious injury ordeath.
Center seatbelt is stowed in the recess ofthe ceiling.
1. Remove the connector (tongue) platefrom the slot located at the front of therecess by pulling the connector (tongue)plate rearward.
2. Pull out the seatbelt slowly from theoverhead retractor.
3. After confirming that the webbing is nottwisted, insert the connector (tongue)attached at the webbing end into thebuckle on the right-hand side until a click
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Front seatbelt pretensioners
Thedriver’s and front passenger’s seat-belts have a seatbelt pretensioner. Theseatbelt pretensioners for the driver’s seatand front passenger’s seat operate at thesame time as the frontal, and side SRSairbags. If the vehicle rolls over, theyoperate simultaneously with the curtainairbag.
The front and side airbag sensors and therollover sensor are used as the preten-sioner sensors. If a sensor detects acertain predetermined amount of forceduring a frontal collision, a side impactcollision or a rollover collision of thevehicle, the front seatbelt is quickly drawnback in by the retractor to take up theslack so that the belt more effectively
restrains the front seat occupant.
When a seatbelt pretensioner is activated,an operating noise will be heard and asmall amount of smoke will be released.These occurrences are normal and notharmful. This smoke does not indicate afire in the vehicle.
Once the seatbelt pretensioner has beenactivated, the seatbelt retractor remainslocked. Consequently, the seatbelt can notbe pulled out and retracted and thereforemust be replaced.
NOTE
.Seatbelt pretensioners are not de-signed to activate in minor frontalimpacts, in minor side impacts or rearimpacts..The seatbelt pretensioners for thedriver’sseatandfrontpassenger’sseat operate at the same time as thefrontal, and side SRS airbags. If thevehicle rolls over, they operate simul-taneously with thecurtain airbag..Pretensioners are designed to func-tion on a one-time-only basis. In theevent that a pretensioner is activated,both the driver’s and front passenger’sseatbelt retractor assemblies must bereplaced and only by an authorizedSUBARU dealer. When replacing seat-
belt retractor assemblies, use onlygenuine SUBARU parts..If either front seatbelt does notretract or cannot be pulled out due toamalfunctionoractivationofthepretensioner, contact your SUBARUdealer as soon as possible..If the front seatbelt retractor assem-bly or surrounding area has beendamaged, contact your SUBARU dealeras soon as possible..When you sell your vehicle, we urgeyou to explain to the buyer that it hasseatbelt pretensioners by alerting himto the contents of this section.
WARNING
.To obtain maximum protection,occupants should sit in an up-right position with their seatbeltsproperly fastened. Refer to“Seat-belts”F1-17.
.Do not modify, remove or strikethe front seatbelt retractor as-semblies or surrounding area.This could result in accidentalactivation of the seatbelt preten-sioners or could make the sys-tem inoperative, possibly result-ing in serious injury. Seatbeltpretensioners have no user-ser-
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1-28Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
viceable parts. For required ser-vicing of front seatbelt retractorsequipped with seatbelt preten-sioners, see your nearestSUBARU dealer.
.When discarding front seatbeltretractor assemblies or scrap-ping the entire vehicle due tocollision damage or for otherreasons, consult your SUBARUdealer.
&System monitors
A diagnostic system continually monitorsthe readiness of the seatbelt pretensionerwhile the vehicle is being driven. Theseatbeltpretensioners share the controlmodule with the airbag system. Therefore,if any malfunction occurs in a seatbeltpretensioner, the SRS airbag systemwarning light will illuminate. For details,refer to“SRS airbag system monitors”F1-71.
&System servicing
WARNING
.When discarding a seatbelt re-tractor assembly or scrappingthe entire vehicle damaged by a
collision, consult your SUBARUdealer.
.Tampering with or disconnectingthe system’s wiring could resultin accidental activation of theseatbelt pretensioner and/or air-bag or could make the systeminoperative, which may result inserious injury. Do not use elec-trical test equipment on anycircuit related to the seatbeltpretensioner and airbag sys-tems. For required servicing ofthe seatbelt pretensioner, seeyour nearest SUBARU dealer.
CAUTION
The front sub sensors are locatedon both sides of the radiator panel,and the airbag control module in-cludingthe impact sensors is lo-cated under the center console. Ifyou need service or repair in thoseareas or near the front seatbeltretractors, we recommend that youhave an authorized SUBARU dealerperform the work.
NOTE
If the front part of the vehicle isdamaged in an accident to the extentthat the seatbelt pretensioner does notoperate, contact your SUBARU dealeras soon as possible.
&Precautions against vehicle
modification
Always consult your SUBARU dealer ifyou want to install any accessory parts toyour vehicle.
CAUTION
Do not perform any of the followingmodifications. Such modificationscan interfere with proper operationof the seatbelt pretensioners.
.Attachment of any equipment(bush bar, winches, snow plow,skid plate, etc.)other than genu-ine SUBARU accessory parts tothe front end.
.Modification of the suspensionsystem or front end structure.
.Installation of a tire of differentsize and construction from thetires specified on the vehicleplacard attached to the doorpillar or specified for individual