2015 Alfa Romeo 4C Owner handbook (in English)

Each seat belt must be used by only
one person. Never travel with a child
sitting on the passenger's lap and
a single belt to protect them both fig.
68. In general, do not place any objects
between the person and the belt.
66)
67)
SEAT BELTS
MAINTENANCE
❒Always use the seat belts well
stretched and never twisted; make
sure that they are free to run without
obstructions;
❒replace the belt after an accident of a
certain severity even if it does not
appear to be damaged. Always
replace the belt if the pretensioners
were deployed;❒hand wash the seat belts with water
and neutral soap, rinse and leave to
dry in the shade. Never use strong
detergents, bleach, paints or any
other substance which could
damage the belt fibres;
❒prevent the retractors from getting
wet: their correct operation is only
guaranteed if water does not get
inside;
❒replace the seat belt when there is
wear or cuts.
WARNING
64) Never press button C fig. 65
when travelling.
65) For maximum protection, keep
the backrest upright, lean back
into it and make sure the seat belt
fits closely across your chest
and pelvis. Always fasten the seat
belts! Travelling without seat
belts fastened increases the risk
of serious injuries or even death in
the event of an impact.66) Under no circumstances should
the seat belt and pretensioner
components be removed or
tampered with. Any operations on
these components must be
performed by qualified and
authorised technicians. Always
contact the dedicated Alfa Romeo
Dealership.
67) If the belt has been subjected to
a high level of stress, for example
after an accident, it must be
completely replaced together with
the attachments, attachment
fixing screws and the
pretensioner. In fact, even if the
belt has no visible defects, it could
have lost its resilience.
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93

SBR SYSTEM (Seat
Belt Reminder)
IN BRIEF
This system comprises an acoustic
warning which, in conjunction with
the
warning light flashing on the
instrument panel, advises the driver if
their seat belt has not been fastened.
Contact the dedicated Alfa Romeo
Dealership to deactivate this acoustic
warning permanently.
The acoustic warning can be
reactivated at any time through the
Setup Menu (see "Menu Options"
paragraph in “Knowing the
instrument panel” section).
If the driver side seat belt is not
fastened, when 20 km/h is exceeded or
when travelling at a speed from 10 to
20 km/h for longer than 5 seconds, an
acoustic signal sequence will be started
(continuous acoustic signal for the first
6 seconds followed by 90 seconds
of intermittent beeping) and the
warning light will flash.The warning light will stay on constantly
at the end of the cycle until the engine
is stopped. The acoustic signal is
interrupted immediately when the seat
belt is fastened.
If the seat belt is unfastened again
when driving the car, the acoustic signal
and the flashing warning light resume
as described previously.
PRETENSIONERS
The car is equipped with seat belt
pretensioners, which draw back the
seat belts by several centimetres in the
event of a strong frontal impact. This
guarantees the perfect adherence
of the seat belts to the occupant's
bodies before the retention action
begins.
It is evident that the pretensioners have
operated when the belt withdraws
toward the retractor.
This car is also equipped with a second
pretensioner (in the kick plate area). Its
activation is signalled by the shortening
of the metal cable.
A slight discharge of smoke may be
produced during the activation of the
pretensioner which is not in harmful and
does not involve any fire hazard.
IMPORTANT To obtain the highest
degree of protection from the action of
the pretensioner, wear the seat belt
tight to the chest and pelvis.
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SAFETY

The pretensioner does not require any
maintenance or lubrication: any
changes to its original conditions will
invalidate its efficiency. If, due to
unusual natural events (floods, sea
storms, etc.), the device has been
affected by water and/or mud, contact
the dedicated Alfa Romeo Dealership to
have it replaced.
68) 69)
7)
LOAD LIMITERS
To increase protection, the seat belt
retractors contain a device which
controls the force acting on the chest
and shoulders during the belt
restraining action in the event of an
accident.
WARNING
68) The pretensioner can be used
only once. After activation go to
the dedicated Alfa Romeo
Dealership to have it replaced.
69) Removing or otherwise
tampering with pretensioner and
seat belt components is strictly
prohibited. Any operations on
these components must be
performed by qualified and
authorised technicians. Always
contact the dedicated Alfa Romeo
Dealership.
IMPORTANT
7) Operations which lead to impacts,
vibrations or localised heating
(over 100°C for a maximum of six
hours) in the area around the
pretensioner may damage
or deploy them. Contact the
dedicated Alfa Romeo Dealership
if there is the need to operate
on those components.
CARRYING
CHILDREN SAFELY
Alfa Romeo 4C is a sporty car that can
be driven in town every day, provided
its driver and passengers fasten their
seat belts. Carrying a child on the
passenger's seat is also allowed,
provided the child weighs more than 9
kg and a suitable child restraint system
is used.
Children must be suitably restrained
inside the vehicle according to their
weight. Several child restraint system
types are available; always choose the
one most suitable for the child:
70)
When over 1.50 m in height, from
the point of view of restraint systems,
children are considered as adults and
have to wear the standard seat belts.
All child restraint devices must bear the
certification data, together with the
control mark, on a label solidly fixed to
the seat which must never be removed.
Child restraint systems are available
from Lineaccessori Alfa Romeo. These
products have been designed and
tested specifically for Alfa Romeo
vehicles.
95

WARNING
70) The car passenger's seat is not
suitable for carrying rear facing
child restraint systems (Group
0 and 0+). On this car it is
therefore NOT allowed to carry
newborns (weighing up to 9 kg).
FITTING
“UNIVERSAL” CHILD
RESTRAINT SYSTEM
(with seat belts)
Only Group 1, 2 and 3 child restraint
systems, namely forward facing child
restraint systems, can be installed
on the 4C.
This car is NOT compliant for fitting rear
facing child restraint systems on the
passenger's seat.
GROUP 1
Children of weight from 9 to 18 kg may
be carried in forward facing child
restraint systems fig. 69.
71)
GROUP2-3
Children from 15 to 36 kg may use the
car seat belts directly fig. 70.
The child restraint system is used only
to position the child correctly with
respect to the belts so that the diagonal
section crosses the child's chest and
never the neck, and the horizontal part
is snug on the pelvis not the abdomen.
71)
WARNING
71) The figures are indicative and for
assembly purposes only. Fit the
child restraint system according
to the instructions, which must be
included.
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SAFETY

SUITABILITY OF THE PASSENGER SEAT FOR UNIVERSAL CHILD RESTRAINT
SYSTEM USE
The car complies with the European Directive 2000/3/EC which governs the arrangement of child restraint systems on the
passenger's seat of the car as shown in the following table:
Group Weight groups Passenger
Group 1 9-18 kg L
Group 2 15-25 kg L
Group 3 22-36 kg L
L = suitable for special child restraint systems for this type of car.
97

CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEMS RECOMMENDED BY ALFA ROMEO FOR YOUR 4C
Lineaccessori Alfa Romeo offers two special forward facing child restraint systems for 4C, secured with the three-point seat
belt only.
Weight group Child restraint systemType of child restraint
systemChild restraint system installation
Group1–from9up
to 18 kg
Britax Romer Duo Plus
Approval number: E1
04301133
Fiat order code: 71803161Child restraint system to be fitted facing
forwards only using ONLY the car's safety
belts.
It is recommended not to use the ISOFIX
anchorages and the child restraint system
top tether as the car is not equipped with
ISOFIX anchorages and top tether.
Group2–3from15
kg to 36 kg
Fair Junior Fix
Approval number: E4
04443721
Fiat order code: 71806570It must be installed forward facing only,
using ONLY the car's seat belt.
It is recommended not to use the ISOFIX
anchorages as the car is not equipped with
ISOFIX anchorages.
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SAFETY

Main safety rules to be
followed when carrying
children
❒Follow the instructions supplied with
the child restraint system itself, which
the manufacturer must provide.
Keep the instructions in the car along
with the other documents and this
handbook. Do not use child restraint
systems without instructions;
❒always check that the seat belt is well
fastened by pulling on it;
❒only one child is to be strapped into
each restraint system; never carry
two children using one child restraint
system;
❒always check that seat belts do not
rest on the child’s neck;
❒while travelling, do not let the child sit
incorrectly or release the belts;
❒never carry children on your lap, even
newborns. No-one could restrain
them in the event of an accident;
❒in the event of an accident, replace
the child restraint system with a
new one.FRONT AIRBAGS
DRIVER AND
PASSENGER FRONT
AIRBAGS
The car features multistage front
airbags (“Smart bag system”) for driver
and passenger.
The front driver/passenger airbags are
designed to protect occupants in the
event of frontal impacts of medium-high
severity, by placing the bag between
the occupant and the steering wheel or
dashboard.
Therefore, non-activation of the front
airbags in other types of collisions (side
collisions, rear shunts, rollovers, etc.)
does not indicate a system malfunction.
Airbags are not a replacement of but
complementary to the seat belts, which
you are recommended to always wear.
In the event of impact, those not
wearing a seat belt are projected
forwards and may come into contact
with the bag which is still inflating. The
protection offered by the bag is
compromised in these circumstances.
72)
Front airbags may not activate in the
following situations:❒frontal impacts against highly
deformable objects not involving the
front surface of the car (e.g. wing
collision against guard rail);
❒jamming of the car underneath other
vehicles or protective barriers (e.g.
underneath a truck or a guard rail); in
this case, the bags would offer no
additional protection with respect to
the seat belt and their deployment
would be inappropriate. In these
cases, non-deployment does not
indicate a system malfunction.
Driver front airbag
This is located in a dedicated
compartment in the centre of the
steering wheel fig. 71.
73)
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99

Passenger front airbag
This is located in a dedicated
compartment in the dashboard fig. 72.
74)
GENERAL WARNINGS
The front airbags may activate in the
event of sharp impacts to the
underbody of the car (e.g. impact with
steps, pavements, potholes or road
bumps, etc.).
When the airbag deploys it emits a
small amount of dust: the dust is
harmless and does not indicate the
beginning of a fire. The dust may irritate
the skin and eyes however: in this
case, wash with neutral soap
and water.
Airbag checking, repair and
replacement must be carried out at a
dedicated Alfa Romeo Dealership.If the car is scrapped, have the airbag
system deactivated at a dedicated
Alfa Romeo Dealership.
Pretensioners and airbags are deployed
according to different logics on the
basis of the type of collision. Failure to
deploy of one of the devices does
not necessarily indicate a system
malfunction.
77) 78) 79) 80) 81) 82) 83)
WARNING
72) Do not apply stickers or other
objects to the steering wheel or
the passenger side airbag cover.
Do not place objects on the
passenger side of the dashboard
because these could interfere
with the correct opening of the
passenger airbag and cause injury
to occupants.
73) Always drive keeping your hands
on the steering wheel rim so that
the airbag can inflate freely if
necessary. Do not drive with your
body bent forward. Keep the
backrest in straight position,
resting correctly your back on it.74) Instructions to deactivate the
passenger's front airbag can be
found in the "Menu Options"
paragraph of the "Knowing the
instrument panel" chapter. Please
note that under these conditions
the airbag will NOT deploy in case
of need (accident).
75) Do not rest your head, arms or
elbows on the door to prevent
injury during airbag deployment.
76) Never lean your head, arms and
elbows out of the window.
77) If the
warning light does not
switch on when the key is turned
to MAR-ON, or stays on while
driving (on some versions
together with a message on the
display) there may be a fault in the
restraint systems. In this case,
airbags or pretensioners may not
be activated in the case of an
accident or (in a lesser number of
cases) they may be activated
incorrectly. Before proceeding,
contact a dedicated Alfa Romeo
Dealership to have the system
checked immediately.
78) Do not travel carrying objects on
your lap, in front of your chest or
between your lips (pipe, pencils,
etc.): they could cause severe
injury if the airbag is deployed.
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SAFETY