2015 DODGE DART Owners Manual

WARNING!(Continued)
•A shoulder belt placed behind you will not protect
you from injury during a collision. You are more
likely to hit your head in a collision if you do not
wear your shoulder belt. The lap and shoulder belt
are meant to be used together.
•A frayed or torn seat belt could rip apart in a
collision and leave you with no protection. Inspect
the seat belt system periodically, checking for cuts,
frays, or loose parts. Damaged parts must be re-
placed immediately. Do not disassemble or modify
the seat belt system. Seat belt assemblies must be
replaced after a collision.
Lap/Shoulder Belt Operating Instructions
1. Enter the vehicle and close the door. Sit back and
adjust the seat.
2. The seat belt latch plate is above the back of the front
seat, and next to your arm in the rear seat (for vehicles
equipped with a rear seat). Grasp the latch plate and
pull out the seat belt. Slide the latch plate up the
webbing as far as necessary to allow the seat belt to go
around your lap.
Pulling Out The Latch Plate
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 55

3. When the seat belt is long enough to fit, insert the latch
plate into the buckle until you hear a “click.”
4. Position the lap belt so that it is snug and lies low
across your hips, below your abdomen. To remove
slack in the lap belt portion, pull up on the shoulder
belt. To loosen the lap belt if it is too tight, tilt the latch
plate and pull on the lap belt. A snug seat belt reduces
the risk of sliding under the seat belt in a collision.
5. Position the shoulder belt across the shoulder and
chest with minimal, if any slack so that it is comfort-
able and not resting on your neck. The retractor will
withdraw any slack in the shoulder belt.
Inserting Latch Plate Into BucklePositioning The Lap Belt
56 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

6. To release the seat belt, push the red button on the
buckle. The seat belt will automatically retract to its
stowed position. If necessary, slide the latch plate
down the webbing to allow the seat belt to retract
fully.
Lap/Shoulder Belt Untwisting Procedure
Use the following procedure to untwist a twisted lap/
shoulder belt.
1. Position the latch plate as close as possible to the
anchor point.
2. At about 6 to 12 in (15 to 30 cm) above the latch plate,
grasp and twist the seat belt webbing 180° to create a
fold that begins immediately above the latch plate.
3. Slide the latch plate upward over the folded webbing.
The folded webbing must enter the slot at the top of
the latch plate.
4. Continue to slide the latch plate up until it clears the
folded webbing and the seat belt is no longer twisted.
Adjustable Upper Shoulder Belt Anchorage
In the driver and front passenger seats, the top of the
shoulder belt can be adjusted upward or downward to
position the seat belt away from your neck. Push or
squeeze the anchorage button to release the anchorage,
and move it up or down to the position that serves you
best.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 57

As a guide, if you are shorter than average, you will
prefer the shoulder belt anchorage in a lower position,
and if you are taller than average, you will prefer the
shoulder belt anchorage in a higher position. After you
release the anchorage button, try to move it up or down
to make sure that it is locked in position.
NOTE:The adjustable upper shoulder belt anchorage is
equipped with an Easy Up feature. This feature allows
the shoulder belt anchorage to be adjusted in the upward
position without pushing or squeezing the release but-
ton. To verify the shoulder belt anchorage is latched, pull
downward on the shoulder belt anchorage until it is
locked into position.
Seat Belt Extender
If a seat belt is not long enough to fit properly, even when
the webbing is fully extended and the adjustable upper
shoulder belt anchorage (if equipped) is in its lowest
position, your authorized dealer can provide you with a
Seat Belt Extender. The Seat Belt Extender should be used
only if the existing seat belt is not long enough. When the
Seat Belt Extender is not required for a different occu-
pant, it must be removed.
Adjustable Anchorage
58 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
•ONLY use a Seat Belt Extender if it is physically
required in order to properly fit the original seat
belt system. DO NOT USE the Seat Belt Extender
if, when worn, the distance between the front edge
of the Seat Belt Extender buckle and the center of
the occupant’s body is LESS than 6 inches.
•Using a Seat Belt Extender when not needed can
increase the risk of serious injury or death in a
collision. Only use the Seat Belt Extender when the
lap belt is not long enough and only use in the
recommended seating positions. Remove and store
the Seat Belt Extender when not needed.
Seat Belts And Pregnant Women
We recommend that pregnant women use the seat belts
throughout their pregnancy. Keeping the mother safe is
the best way to keep the baby safe.
Pregnant women should wear the lap part of the seat belt
across the thighs and as snug across the hips as possible.
Keep the seat belt low so that it does not come across the
abdomen. That way the strong bones of the hips will take
the force if there is a collision.
Seat Belt Pretensioner
The front seat belt system is equipped with pretensioning
devices that are designed to remove slack from the seat
belt in the event of a collision. These devices may
improve the performance of the seat belt by removing
slack from the seat belt early in a collision. Pretensioners
work for all size occupants, including those in child
restraints.
NOTE:These devices are not a substitute for proper seat
belt placement by the occupant. The seat belt still must be
worn snugly and positioned properly.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 59

The pretensioners are triggered by the Occupant Re-
straint Controller (ORC). Like the air bags, the preten-
sioners are single use items. A deployed pretensioner or
a deployed air bag must be replaced immediately.
Energy Management Feature
This vehicle has a seat belt system with an Energy
Management feature in the front seating positions that
may help further reduce the risk of injury in the event of
a collision. This seat belt system has a retractor assembly
that is designed to release webbing in a controlled
manner.
Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) — If Equipped
The seat belts in the passenger seating positions may be
equipped with Switchable Automatic Locking Retractors
(ALR) which are used to secure a child restraint system.
For additional information, refer to “Installing Child
Restraints Using The Vehicle Seat Belt” under the “Child
Restraints” section of this manual. The table below
defines the type of feature for each seating position.
•ALR = Switchable Automatic Locking Retractor
60 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

If the passenger seating position is equipped with an
ALR and is being used for normal usage:
Only pull the seat belt webbing out far enough to
comfortably wrap around the occupant’s mid-section so
as to not activate the ALR. If the ALR is activated, you
will hear a clicking sound as the seat belt retracts. Allow
the webbing to retract completely in this case and then
carefully pull out only the amount of webbing necessary
to comfortably wrap around the occupant’s mid-section.
Slide the latch plate into the buckle until you hear a
#click.#
In Automatic Locking Mode, the shoulder belt is auto-
matically pre-locked. The seat belt will still retract to
remove any slack in the shoulder belt. The Automatic
Locking Mode is available on all passenger-seating posi-
tions with a combination lap/shoulder belt. Use the
Automatic Locking Mode anytime a child restraint is
installed in a seating position that has a seat belt with this
feature. Children 12 years old and under should always
be properly restrained in a vehicle with a rear seat.
WARNING!
•Never place a rear-facing child restraint in front of
an air bag. A deploying Passenger Advanced Front
Air Bag can cause death or serious injury to a child
12 years or younger, including a child in a rear-
facing child restraint.
•Only use rear-facing child restraint in a vehicle
with a rear seat.
How To Engage The Automatic Locking Mode
1. Buckle the combination lap and shoulder belt.
2. Grasp the shoulder portion and pull downward until
the entire seat belt is extracted.
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3. Allow the seat belt to retract. As the seat belt retracts,
you will hear a clicking sound. This indicates the seat
belt is now in the Automatic Locking Mode.
How To Disengage The Automatic Locking Mode
Unbuckle the combination lap/shoulder belt and allow it
to retract completely to disengage the Automatic Locking
Mode and activate the vehicle sensitive (emergency)
locking mode.
WARNING!
•The seat belt assembly must be replaced if the
switchable Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) fea-
ture or any other seat belt function is not working
properly when checked according to the proce-
dures in the Service Manual.
(Continued)
WARNING!(Continued)
•Failure to replace the seat belt assembly could
increase the risk of injury in collisions.
•Do not use the Automatic Locking Mode to restrain
occupants who are wearing the seat belt or children
who are using booster seats. The locked mode is
only used to install rear-facing or forward-facing
child restraints that have a harness for restraining
the child.
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
Air Bag System Components
Your vehicle may be equipped with the following air bag
system components:
•Occupant Restraint Controller (ORC)
•Air Bag Warning Light
62 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE