01 Safety
Supplemental Restraint System01
23
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
G027284
SRS warning lightAs an enhancement to the three-point seat belts, your Volvo is equipped with a Supple-mental Restraint System (SRS). Volvo's SRSconsists of seat belt pretensioners, front air-bags, side impact airbags, the occupantweight sensor, and inflatable curtains. All ofthese systems are monitored by the SRScontrol module. An SRS warning light in theinstrument panel (see the illustration) illumi-nates when the ignition key is turned to posi-tion I, II , or III, and will normally go out after
approximately 7 seconds if no faults aredetected in the system. Where applicable, a text messagewill also be displayed when theSRS warning light illuminates. Ifthis warning symbol is not func-tioning properly, the general
warning symbol illuminates and a text mes-sage will be displayed.
WARNING
• If the SRS warning light stays on after the engine has started or if it illumi-nates while you are driving, have thevehicle inspected by a trained andqualified Volvo service technician assoon as possible.
• Never try to repair any component orpart of the SRS yourself. Any interfer-ence in the system could cause mal-function and serious injury. All work onthese systems should be performed byan authorized Volvo service technician.
WARNING
If your vehicle has been subjected to flood conditions (e.g. soaked carpeting/standingwater on the floor of the vehicle) or if yourvehicle has become flood-damaged in anyway, do not attempt to start the vehicle orput the key in the ignition before discon-necting the battery (see below). This maycause airbag deployment which couldresult in personal injury. Have the vehicletowed to a trained and qualified Volvoservice technician for repairs. Automatic transmission: Before attempting to tow the vehicle, use the following procedure to override theshiftlock system to move the gear selectorto the neutral position:
1. Switch off the ignition for at least
10 minutes and disconnect the bat- tery.
2. Wait at least one minute.
3. Insert the key in the ignition and turn it to position II
4. Press firmly on the brake pedal.
5. Move the gear selector from P (Park)
to the N (Neutral) position.
01 Safety
Front airbags01
25
Front airbag deployment
•The front airbags are designed to deploy during certain frontal or front-angular col-lisions, impacts, or decelerations,depending on the crash severity, angle,speed and object impacted. The airbagsmay also deploy in certain non-frontalcollisions where rapid decelerationoccurs.
• The SRS sensors, which trigger the frontairbags, are designed to react to both theimpact of the collision and the inertialforces generated by it, and to determine ifthe intensity of the collision is sufficientfor the seat belt pretensioners and/or air-bags to be deployed.
However, not all frontal collisions activate the front airbags.
• If the collision involves a nonrigid object (e.g., a snow drift or bush), or a rigid,fixed object at a low speed, the front air-bags will not necessarily deploy.
• Front airbags do not normally deploy in aside impact collision, in a collision fromthe rear or in a rollover situation.
• The amount of damage to the bodyworkdoes not reliably indicate if the airbagsshould have deployed or not.NOTE
•Deployment of front airbags occurs only one time during an accident. In acollision where deployment occurs,the airbags and seat belt pretensionersactivate. Some noise occurs and asmall amount of powder is released.The release of the powder may appearas smoke-like matter. This is a normalcharacteristic and does not indicatefire.
• Volvo's front airbags use special sen-sors that are integrated with the frontseat buckles. The point at which theairbag deploys is determined bywhether or not the seat belt is beingused, as well as the severity of the col-lision.
• Collisions can occur where only one ofthe airbags deploys. If the impact isless severe, but severe enough topresent a clear injury risk, the airbagsare triggered at partial capacity. If theimpact is more severe, the airbags aretriggered at full capacity.
Should you have questions about any com- ponent in the SRS system, please contact atrained and qualified Volvo service technicianor Volvo customer support:
In the USAVolvo Cars of North America, LLC Customer Care Center1 Volvo DriveP.O. Box 914Rockleigh, New Jersey 076471-800-458-1552www.volvocars.us
In CanadaVolvo Cars of Canada Corp.National Customer Service9130 Leslie Street, Suite 101Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 0B91-800-663-8255www.volvocars.ca
01 Safety
Front airbags01
27
WARNING
•No objects or accessory equipment, e.g. dashboard covers, may be placedon, attached to, or installed near theair bag hatch (the area above the glovecompartment) or the area affected byairbag deployment.
• There should be no loose articles, e.g.coffee cups, on the floor, seat, ordashboard area.
• Never try to open the airbag cover onthe steering wheel or the passenger'sside dashboard. This should only bedone by a trained and qualified Volvoservice technician.
Failure to follow these instructions can result in injury to the vehicle occupants.
01 Safety
Occupant Weight Sensor 01
28
Disabling the passenger's side front airbag
G027050
Occupant Weight Sensor (OWS) indicator light
Volvo recommends that ALL occupants (adults and children) shorter than 4 feet7 inches (140 cm) be seated in the rear seatof any vehicle with a passenger's side frontairbag, and be properly restrained. Childrenshould always be seated in child restraintsappropriate for their size and weight. Forchild safety recommendations, seepage 38. The Occupant Weight Sensor (OWS) is designed to meet the regulatory requirementsof Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard(FMVSS) 208 and is designed to disable (will not inflate) the passenger's side front airbagunder certain conditions. The OWS works with sensors that are part of the front passenger's seat and seat belt. Thesensors are designed to detect the presenceof a properly seated occupant and determineif the passenger's side front airbag should beenabled (may inflate) or disabled (will notinflate). The OWS will disable (will not inflate) the pas- senger's side front airbag when:
• the front passenger's seat is unoccupied, or has small/medium objects in the frontseat,
• the system determines that an infant ispresent in a rear-facing infant seat that isinstalled according to the manufacturer'sinstructions,
• the system determines that a small childis present in a forward-facing childrestraint that is installed according to themanufacturer's instructions,
• the system determines that a small childis present in a booster seat,
• a front passenger takes his/her weight offof the seat for a period of time,
• a child or a small person occupies thefront passenger's seat. The OWS uses a
PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF
indicator lamp which will illuminate and stay on to remind you that the passenger's sidefront airbag is disabled. The PASSENGER
AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp is located in the
overhead console, near the base of the rear-view mirror.
NOTE
The PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator
lamp will illuminate for a short period of time when the ignition is turned on to con-firm it is functional. When the front pas-senger's seat is not occupied (empty seat)or in the event that the passenger's sidefront airbag is enabled (may inflate), thePASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp
will be off.
However, if a fault is detected in the sys- tem: • The OWS indicator light will stay on
• The SRS warning light (see page 23) will come on and stay on
• The message
PASS. AIRBAG OFF
SERVICE URGENT will be displayed in
the information display.
01 Safety
Occupant Weight Sensor01
29
WARNING
•If a fault in the system is detected and indicated as explained, be aware thatthe passenger's side front airbag willnot deploy in the event of a collision.
• In this case, the safety systems andOccupant Weight Sensor should beinspected by a trained and qualifiedVolvo service technician as soon aspossible.
WARNING
•Never try to open, remove, or repair any components in the OWS system.This could result in system malfunc-tion. Maintenance or repairs shouldonly be carried out by a trained andqualified Volvo service technician.
• The front passenger's seat should notbe modified in any way. This couldreduce pressure on the seat cushion,which might interfere with the OWSsystem's function.
The OWS is designed to disable (will not inflate) the passenger's side front airbagwhen a rear facing infant seat, a forward-fac-ing child restraint, or a booster seat isdetected. The
PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp will illuminate and stay on toremind you that the passenger's side frontairbag is disabled (see the following table).
Passeng- er's seatoccu-pancystatusOWS indicatorlight sta-tusPasseng- er's sidefront air-bag status
Seat unoc- cupiedOWS indi- cator light
is not
lit
Passenger's side front air-bag disabled
Seat occu- pied by lowweightoccupant/ object AOWS indi- cator light
lights
up
Passenger's side front air-bag disabled
Seat occu- pied byheavy occu-pant/objectOWS indi- cator light
is not
lit
Passenger's side front air-bag enabled
A
Volvo recommends that children always be properly restrained in appropriate child restraints in the rear seats.Inrare situations when the seat belt is not properly fastened,some child restraints may not be detected by the OWSbecause there is very little weight on the vehicle seat cush-ion. In these cases the passenger's side front airbag maybe disabled, but the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator
lamp will not be lit. Do not assume that the passenger'sside front airbag is disabled unless the PASSENGERAIRBAG OFF
indicator lamp is lit. Make sure the child
restraint is properly installed (turn the vehicle off, removethe child restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the restraintfollowing the child restraint manufacturer's instructions)and that the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp is
on, or move the child restraint to the rear seat.
The OWS is designed to enable (may inflate) the passenger's side front airbag in the eventof a collision anytime the system senses thata person of adult size is sitting properly in thefront passenger's seat. The PASSENGER
AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp will be off and
remain off. If a person of adult size is sitting in the front passenger's seat, but the PASSENGER
AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp is on, it is possi-
ble that the person isn't sitting properly in theseat. If this happens:
1. Turn the vehicle off and ask the person to place the seat back in an upright position.
2. Have the person sit upright in the seat, centered on the seat cushion, with the person's legs comfortably extended.
3. Restart the vehicle and have the person remain in this position for about twominutes. This will allow the system todetect that person and enable the pas-senger's frontal airbag.
4. If the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indica-
tor lamp remains on even after this, the
01 Safety
Occupant Weight Sensor 01
30
person should be advised to ride in the rear seat.
This condition reflects limitations of the OWSclassification capability. It does not indicateOWS malfunction.
ModificationsIf you are considering modifying your vehiclein any way to accommodate a disability, forexample by altering or adapting the driver'sor front passenger's seat(s) and/or airbagsystems, please contact Volvo at: In the USA Volvo Cars of North America, LLC Customer Care Center1 Volvo DriveP.O. Box 914 Rockleigh,New Jersey 076471-800-458-1552 In Canada Volvo Cars of Canada Corp. National Customer Service9130 Leslie Street, Suite 101Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 0B91-800-663-8255
WARNING
• No objects that add to the total weight on the seat should be placed on thefront passenger's seat. If a child isseated in the front passenger's seatwith any additional weight, this extraweight could cause the OWS systemto enable the airbag, which mightcause it to deploy in the event of a col-lision, thereby injuring the child.
• The seat belt should never be wrappedaround an object on the front pas-senger's seat. This could interfere withthe OWS system's function.
• The front passenger's seat belt shouldnever be used in a way that exertsmore pressure on the passenger thannormal. This could increase the pres-sure exerted on the weight sensor by achild, and could result in the airbagbeing enabled, which might cause it todeploy in the event of a collision,thereby injuring the child.
WARNING
Keep the following points in mind with respect to the OWS system. Failure to fol-low these instructions could adverselyaffect the system's function and result inserious injury to the occupant of the frontpassenger's seat:
• The full weight of the front seat pas- senger should always be on the seatcushion. The passenger should neverlift him/herself off the seat cushionusing the armrest in the door or thecenter console, by pressing the feet onthe floor, by sitting on the edge of theseat cushion, or by pressing againstthe backrest in a way that reducespressure on the seat cushion. Thiscould cause OWS to disable the frontpassenger's side airbag.
• Do not place any type of object on thefront passenger's seat in such a waythat jamming, pressing, or squeezingoccurs between the object and thefront seat, other than as a direct resultof the correct use of the AutomaticLocking Retractor/Emergency LockingRetractor (ALR/ELR) seat belt (seepage 39).
• No objects should be placed under thefront passenger's seat. This could
01 Safety
Side impact protection airbags01
33
WARNING
•The SIPS airbag system is a supple- ment to the structural Side ImpactProtection System and the three-pointseat belt system. It is not designed todeploy during collisions from the frontor rear of the vehicle or in rollover sit-uations.
• The use of seat covers on the frontseats may impede SIPS airbag deploy-ment.
• No objects, accessory equipment orstickers may be placed on, attached toor installed near the SIPS airbag sys-tem or in the area affected by SIPS air-bag deployment.
• Never try to open or repair any compo-nents of the SIPS airbag system. Thisshould be done only by a trained andqualified Volvo service technician.
• In order for the SIPS airbag to provideits best protection, both front seatoccupants should sit in an uprightposition with the seat belt properly fas-tened.
• Failure to follow these instructions canresult in injury to the occupants of thevehicle in the event of an accident.
01 Safety
Inflatable Curtain 01
34
The Inflatable Curtain (IC)
G027047
This system consists of inflatable curtains located along the sides of the roof liners,stretching from the front side windows to therear edge of the rear side windows. It isdesigned to help protect the heads of theoccupants of the front seats and the occu-pants of the outboard rear seating positions,including the outboard passenger in the thirdrow of seats in certain side impact collisions.
G027048
The inflatable curtains in the Volvo XC90 are also designed to help protect the occupantsof the vehicle in a roll-over situation, and tohelp prevent them from being thrown fromthe vehicle if a roll-over occurs.
NOTE
The Inflatable Curtains extend to protect all three rows of seats.
By design, the IC system deploys only on the side of the vehicle affected by the impact. However, in certain side impacts, or in a roll- over situation, BOTH the Inflatable Curtains
and the Side Impact Airbag System (SIPS- bag) will deploy, whereas, in some cases,ONLY
the Inflatable Curtain will deploy. In
cases where BOTH the Inflatable Curtain and
the SIPS-bag deploy, deployment will occursimultaneously.
NOTE
If the Inflatable Curtain deploys, it remains inflated for approximately 5 seconds.
WARNING
• The IC system is a supplement to the Side Impact Protection System. It isnot designed to deploy during colli-sions from the front or the rear of thevehicle.
• Never try to open or repair any compo-nents of the IC system. This should bedone only by a trained and qualifiedVolvo service technician.
• Never hang heavy items from the ceil-ing handles. This could impededeployment of the Inflatable curtain.