
24
Safe Driving
For Safe Driving
The following pages explain your vehicle's safety features and how to use them 
properly. The safety precautions below are ones that we consider to be among the 
most important.
Important Safety Precautions
■Always wear your seat belt
A seat belt is your best protection in all types of collisions. Airbags are designed to 
supplement seat belts, not replace them. So  even though your vehicle is equipped 
with airbags, make sure you and your passen gers always wear your seat belts, and 
wear them properly.
■Restrain all children
Children age 12 and under should ride prop erly restrained in a back seat, not the 
front seat. Infants and small children shoul d be restrained in a child seat. Larger 
children should use a booster seat and a lap/ shoulder seat belt until they can use the 
belt properly without a booster seat.
■Be aware of airbag hazards
While airbags can save lives, they can caus e serious or fatal injuries to occupants 
who sit too close to them, or are not prop erly restrained. Infants, young children, 
and short adults are at the greatest risk.  Be sure to follow all instructions and 
warnings in this manual.
■Don't drink and drive
Alcohol and driving don't mix. Even one dr ink can reduce your ability to respond to 
changing conditions, and your reaction time  gets worse with every additional drink. 
So don't drink and drive, and don't let  your friends drink and drive, either.
1Important Safety Precautions
Some states, provinces and  territories prohibit the use 
of cell phones other than  hands-free devices by the 
driver while driving. 

uuFor Safe Driving uYour Vehicle's Safety Features
28
Safe DrivingFor the safety of you and your passenge rs, make a habit of checking these items 
each time before you drive.
• After everyone has entered the vehicle,  be sure all doors and the tailgate are 
closed and locked. Locking the doors and the tailgate helps prevent an occupant 
from being ejected and an outsider from unexpectedly opening a door or the 
tailgate.
2 Locking/Unlocking the Doors from the Inside  P. 103
•Adjust your seat to a position suitable  for driving. Be sure the front seats are 
adjusted as far to the rear  as possible while allowing the driver to control the 
vehicle. Sitting too close to a front airbag can result in serious or fatal injury in a 
crash.
2 Adjusting the Seats  P. 137
•Adjust head restraints to the proper posi tion. Head restraints are most effective 
when the center of the head restraint alig ns with the center of your head. Taller 
persons should adjust their head restraint to the highest position.
2 Adjusting the Head Restraints  P. 141
•Always wear your seat belt, and make sure  you wear it properly. Confirm that any 
passengers are properly belted as well.
2 Fastening a Seat Belt  P. 32
•Protect children by using seat belts or chil d seats according to a child's age, height 
and weight.
2 Child Safety  P. 52
■Safety Checklist1Safety Checklist
If the door and/or the tailgate open indicator is on, a 
door and/or the tailgate is  not completely closed. 
Close all doors and the ta ilgate tightly until the 
indicator goes off. 2 Door Open Indicator  P. 72
2 Door, Glass Hatch, and Tailgate Open 
Indicator
* P. 72
* Not available on all models 

38
uuAirbags uAirbag System Components
Safe Driving
The front, front side, and side curtain 
airbags are deployed  according to the 
direction and severity of impact. The airbag 
system includes:
aTwo SRS (Supplemental Restraint System) 
front airbags. The driver's airbag is stored 
in the center of the steering wheel; the 
front passenger's airbag is stored in the 
dashboard. Both are marked  SRS 
AIRBAG.
bTwo side airbags, one for the driver and 
one for a front passenger. The airbags are 
stored in the outer edges of the seat-
backs. Both are marked SIDE AIRBAG .
cTwo side curtain airbags, one for each 
side of the vehicle. The airbags are stored 
in the ceiling, above the side windows. 
The front and rear pillars are marked 
SIDE CURTAIN AIRBAG.
dAn electronic control unit that continually 
monitors and can record information 
about the sensors, the airbag activators, 
the seat belt tensioners, and driver and 
front passenger seat belt use when the 
ignition switch is in ON 
(w.
eAutomatic front seat belt tensioners. The 
driver's and front passenger's seat belts 
incorporate sensors that detect whether 
or not they are fastened.
fA driver's seat position sensor. If the seat 
is too far forward, the airbag will inflate 
with less force.
gWeight sensors in the front passenger's 
seat. The front passenger's airbag will be 
turned off if the weight  on the seat is 65 
lbs (29 kg) or less (the weight of an infant 
or small child).
hImpact sensors that can detect a 
moderate to severe front impact, side 
impact, or if your vehicle is about to 
rollover.
iAn indicator on the dashboard that alerts 
you that the front passenger's front 
airbag has been turned off.
jSensors that can detect if a child or small 
statured adult is in  the deployment path 
of the front passenger's side airbag.
kAn indicator on the instrument panel that 
alerts you to a possible problem with your 
airbag system or seat belt tensioners.
lAn indicator on the instrument panel that 
alerts you that the fr ont passenger's side 
airbag has been turned off.
mSafing Sensor 

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uuAirbags uTypes of Airbags
Safe Driving
Types of Airbags
Your vehicle is equipped with three types of airbags:
• Front airbags:  Airbags in front of the driver 's and front passenger's seats.
• Side airbags:  Airbags in the driver's and  front passenger's seat-backs.
• Side curtain airbags: Airbags above the side windows.
Each is discussed in the following pages.
Front Airbags (SRS)
The front SRS airbags inflate in a moderate-to -severe frontal collision to help protect 
the head and chest of the driver and/or front passenger.
SRS (Supplemental Restraint System) indica tes that the airbags are designed to 
supplement seat belts, not replace them.  Seat belts are the occupant's primary 
restraint system.
The front airbags are housed  in the center of the steering wheel for the driver, and 
in the dashboard for the front pass enger. Both airbags are marked SRS AIRBAG.
■Housing Locations
1Types of Airbags
The airbags can inflate whenever the ignition switch 
is in ON 
(w.
1 Front Airbags (SRS)
Dual-Stage, Multiple-Threshold Front Airbags 
(SRS)
Your vehicle is equipped wi th dual-stage, multiple-
threshold front airbags (SRS).
During a frontal crash severe  enough to cause one or 
both front airbags to deploy, the airbags can inflate 
at different rates, dependi ng on the severity of the 
crash, whether or not the se at belts are latched, and/
or other factors. Frontal airbags are designed to 
supplement the seat belts to help reduce the 
likelihood of head and chest injuries in frontal 
crashes. 

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uuAirbags uFront Airbags (SRS)
Safe Driving
■When front airbags  should not deploy
Minor frontal crashes:  Front airbags were designed to supplement seat belts and 
help save lives, not to prevent minor scrapes, or even broken bones that might occur 
during a less than moderate-to-severe frontal crash.
Side impacts:  Front airbags can provide protection when a sudden deceleration 
causes a driver or front passenger to move  towards the front of the vehicle. Side 
airbags and side curtain airb ags have been specifically designed to help reduce the 
severity of injuries that can occur during a moderate-to-severe side impact which 
can cause the driver or passenger to move towards the side of the vehicle.
Rear impacts:  Head restraints and seat belts are your best protection during a rear 
impact. Front airbags cannot provide any si gnificant protection and are not designed 
to deploy in such collisions.
Rollovers:  Seat belts and, in vehicl es equipped with a rollover sensor, side airbags 
and side curtain airbags offer the best prot ection in a rollover. Because front airbags 
could provide little if any protection, th ey are not designed to deploy during a 
rollover.
■When front airbags deploy with  little or no visible damage
Because the airbag system senses sudden deceleration, a strong impact to the 
vehicle framework or suspension might caus e one or more of the airbags to deploy. 
Examples include running into a curb, the edge of a hole, or other low fixed object 
that causes a sudden deceleration in th e vehicle chassis. Since the impact is 
underneath the vehicle, damage may not be readily apparent.
■When front airbags may not deploy, even though exterior damage 
appears severe
Since crushable body parts absorb crash energy during an impact, the amount of 
visible damage does not always indicate proper airbag operation. In fact, some 
collisions can result in severe damage but no airbag deployment because the airbags 
would not have been needed or would not  have provided protection even if they 
had deployed. 

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uuAirbags uFront Airbags (SRS)
Safe DrivingYour front airbags have advanced features to help reduce the likelihood of airbag 
related injuries to smaller occupants.
The driver's advanced front airbag system 
includes a seat position sensor.
If the seat is too far forward, the airbag 
inflates with less force, regardless of the 
severity of the impact.
The passenger's advanced front airbag system 
has weight sensors.
Although Honda recommends against 
carrying an infant or small child in front, if the 
sensors detect the weight of a child (up to 
about 65 lbs or 29 kg), the system will 
automatically turn off the passenger's front 
airbag.
■Advanced Airbags1 Advanced Airbags
If there is a problem with the driver's seat position 
sensor, the SRS indicator wi ll come on and the airbag 
will inflate with full (normal) force, regardless of the 
driver's seating position.
For both advanced front airbags to work properly:
•Do not spill any liquid on or under the seats.•Do not put any object under the passenger’s seat.
•Make sure any objects  are positioned properly on 
the floor. Improperly pos itioned objects can 
interfere with the advanced airbag sensors.
•All occupants should sit upri ght and wear their seat 
belts properly.
•Do not place any cover over the passenger side 
dashboard.
Make sure the floor mat  behind the front passenger's 
seat is hooked to the floor  mat anchor. An improperly 
placed mat can interfere with the advanced airbag 
sensors. 2 Floor Mats  P. 429
Driver’s 
Seat 
Position 
Sensor
Passenger’s 
Seat 
Weight 
Sensors 

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uuAirbags uSide Airbags
Safe Driving
Side Airbags
The side airbags help protect the upper to rso of the driver or a front passenger 
during a moderate-to-severe side impact.
The side airbags are housed in the outside 
edge of the driver's and passenger's seat-
backs.
Both are marked SIDE AIRBAG.
When the sensors detect a moderate-to-
severe side impact, the control unit signals the 
side airbag on the impact side to immediately 
inflate.
■Housing Locations
1 Side Airbags
Do not attach accessories on  or near the side airbags. 
They can interfere with the proper operation of the 
airbags, or hurt someone if an airbag inflates.
If the impact is on the passenger's side, the airbag 
may not deploy when there is no passenger in the 
front passenger seat.
Do not cover or replace the front seat-back covers 
without consulting a dealer.
Improperly replac ing or covering front seat-back 
covers can prevent your si de airbags from properly 
deploying during  a side impact.
Housing 
Location
■Operation
When 
inflated
Side 
Airbag 

47
uuAirbags uSide Curtain Airbags
Safe Driving
Side Curtain Airbags
The side curtain airbags help protect the h eads of the driver and passengers in outer 
seating positions during a moderate-to-severe side impact.
The side curtain airbags are located in the 
ceiling above the side windows on both sides 
of the vehicle.
The side curtain airbag is designed to deploy 
in a moderate-to-severe side impact.
■When side curtain airbags deploy in a frontal collision
One or both side curtain airbags may inflate in a moderate to severe angled frontal 
collision.
In this case, the side curtain airbags will deploy slightly after the front airbags.
■Housing Locations
1 Side Curtain Airbags
The side curtain airbags are most effective when an 
occupant is wearing thei r seat belt properly and 
sitting upright, well  back in their seat.
Do not attach any objects to the side windows or roof 
pillars as they can interfere with the proper operation 
of the side curtain airbags.
Side Curtain Airbag Storage
■Operation
Deployed Side Curtain Airbag