3. While holding the shoulder and
lap belt portions together, route the
tongue through the child seat
according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions. Be sure
the belt webbing is not twisted.
4. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle (the buckle closest to
the direction the tongue is coming
from) for that seating position until
you hear a snap and feel the latch
engage. Make sure the tongue is
latched securely by pulling on it.
5. To put the retractor in the
automatic locking mode, grasp the
shoulder portion of the belt and pull
downward until all of the belt is
pulled out.
Note:The automatic locking mode is available on the front passenger
and rear seats. This vehicle does not require the use of a locking clip.
6. Allow the belt to retract to remove slack. The belt will click as it
retracts to indicate it is in the automatic locking mode.
7. Try to pull the belt out of the retractor to make sure the retractor is
in the automatic locking mode. You should not be able to pull more belt
out. If the retractor is not locked, unbuckle the belt and repeat Steps 5
and 6.
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Combining Safety Belt and LATCH Lower Anchors for Attaching
Child Safety Seats
When used in combination, either the safety belt or the LATCH lower
anchors may be attached first, provided a proper installation is achieved.
Attach the tether strap afterward, if included with the child seat.
Using Tether Straps
Many forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap
which extends from the back of the child safety seat and hooks
to an anchoring point called the top tether anchor. Tether
straps are available as an accessory for many older safety seats.
Contact the manufacturer of your child seat for information about
ordering a tether strap, or to obtain a longer tether strap if the tether
strap on your safety seat does not reach the appropriate top tether
anchor in your vehicle.
Once the child safety seat has been installed using either the safety belt,
the lower anchors of the LATCH system, or both, you can attach the top
tether strap.
The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions
(shown from top view):
Perform the following steps to install a child safety seat with tether
anchors:
Note:If you install a child seat with rigid LATCH attachments, do not
tighten the tether strap enough to lift the child seat off your vehicle seat
cushion when the child is seated in it. Keep the tether strap just snug
without lifting the front of the child seat. Keeping the child seat just
touching your vehicle seat gives the best protection in a severe crash.
1. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.
For outboard seating positions, route the tether strap under the head
restraint and between the head restraint posts. For the center seating
positions, route the tether strap over the top of the head restraint. If
needed, the head restraints can also be removed.
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Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions when the child is seated without a booster seat.
•Can the child sit all the way back
against their vehicle seat with
knees bent comfortably at the
edge of the seat cushion?
•Can the child sit without
slouching?
•Does the lap belt rest low across the hips?
•Is the shoulder belt centered on the shoulder and chest?
•Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
Always use booster seats in conjunction with your vehicle lap and
shoulder belt.
Types of Booster Seats
•Backless booster seats
If your backless booster seat has a removable shield, remove the shield. If a
vehicle seating position has a low seatback or no head restraint, a backless
booster seat may place your child’s head (as measured at the tops of the
ears) above the top of the seat. In this case, move the backless booster to
another seating position with a higher seatback or head restraint and lap
and shoulder belts, or consider using a high back booster seat.
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WARNING:Never place, or allow a child to place, the shoulder
belt under a child’s arm or behind the back because it reduces
the protection for the upper part of the body and may increase the risk
of injury or death in a crash.
WARNING:To avoid risk of injury, do not leave children or pets
unattended in your vehicle.
Recommendations for attaching child safety restraints for
children
Restraint
TypeCombined
weight of
child and
child seatUse any attachment method as indicated
below by X.
LATCH
(lower
anchors
and top
tether
anchor)LATCH
(lower
anchors
only)Safety
belt
and top
tether
anchorSafety
belt and
LATCH
(lower
anchors
and top
tether
anchor)Safety
belt
only
Rear-facing
child seatUp to 65 lb
(29.5 kg)XX
Rear-facing
child seatOver 65 lb
(29.5 kg)X
Forward-facing
child seatUp to 65 lb
(29.5 kg)XXX
Forward-facing
child seatOver 65 lb
(29.5 kg)XX
Note:The child seat must rest tightly against the vehicle seat upon
which it is installed. It may be necessary to lift or remove the head
restraint. See theSeatschapter for information on head restraints.
30Child Safety
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Safety Belt Locking Modes
WARNING:After any vehicle crash, the safety belt system at all
passenger seating positions must be checked by an authorized
dealer to verify that the automatic locking retractor feature for child
seats is still functioning properly. In addition, all safety belts should be
checked for proper function.
WARNING:The belt and retractor assembly must be replaced if
the safety belt assembly automatic locking retractor feature or
any other safety belt function is not operating properly when checked
by an authorized dealer. Failure to replace the belt and retractor
assembly could increase the risk of injury in crashes.
All safety restraints in the vehicle are combination lap and shoulder
belts. The driver safety belt has the first type of locking mode. The front
outboard passenger and rear seat safety belts have both types of locking
modes described as follows:
Vehicle Sensitive Mode
This is the normal retractor mode, which allows free shoulder belt length
adjustment to your movements and locking in response to vehicle
movement. For example, if the driver brakes suddenly or turns a corner
sharply, or the vehicle receives an impact of about 5 mph (8 km/h) or
more, the combination safety belts will lock to help reduce forward
movement of the driver and passengers.
In addition, the retractor is designed to lock if the webbing is pulled out
too quickly. If this occurs, let the belt retract slightly and pull webbing
out again in a slow and controlled manner.
Automatic Locking Mode
In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-locked. The belt will
still retract to remove any slack in the shoulder belt. The automatic
locking mode is not available on the driver safety belt.
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If there are lodged objects or cargo is interfering with the seat, take the
following steps to remove the obstruction:
•Pull the vehicle over.
•Turn the vehicle off.
•Driver and adult passengers should check for any objects lodged
underneath the front passenger seat or cargo interfering with the seat.
•Remove the obstruction(s) (if found).
•Restart the vehicle.
•Wait at least two minutes and verify that the airbag readiness light in
the instrument cluster is no longer illuminated.
•If the airbag readiness light in the instrument cluster remains
illuminated, this may or may not be a problem due to the front
passenger sensing system.
Do not attempt to repair or service the system. Take your vehicle
immediately to an authorized dealer.
If it is necessary to modify an advanced front airbag system to
accommodate a person with disabilities, contact the Ford Customer
Relationship Center at the phone number shown in theCustomer
Assistancesection of this owner’s manual.
SIDE AIRBAGS
WARNING:Do not place objects or mount equipment on or near
the airbag cover, on the side of the seatbacks (of the front seats),
or in front seat areas that may come into contact with a deploying
airbag. Failure to follow these instructions may increase the risk of
personal injury in the event of a crash.
WARNING:Do not use accessory seat covers. The use of
accessory seat covers may prevent the deployment of the side
airbags and increase the risk of injury in an accident.
WARNING:Do not lean your head on the door. The side airbag
could injure you as it deploys from the side of the seatback.
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E.MAX A/C:Distributes recirculated air through the instrument panel
vents to cool the vehicle. This position is more economical and efficient
than normal air conditioning.
F.A/C:Press to turn air conditioning off and on. Air conditioning cools
the vehicle using outside air. To improve air conditioning when starting
your vehicle, drive with the windows slightly open for two to three
minutes.
Use air conditioning with recirculated air to improve cooling performance
and efficiency.
Note:Air conditioning turns on automatically in MAX A/C, Defrost and
Floor/Defrost.
G.Power:Press to turn the system off and on. When the system is off,
outside air cannot enter the vehicle.
H.AUTO:Press to turn on fully automatic operation. Select the desired
temperature using the temperature control. The system automatically
determines fan speed, air distribution, air conditioning operation, and
outside or recirculated air, to heat or cool the vehicle to maintain the
selected temperature.
I.Rear defrost:Turns the heated windows and mirrors off and on. See
Heated windows and mirrorslater in this chapter for more
information. If your vehicle is equipped with heated mirrors, this button
turns them on also.
J.Defrost:Distributes air through the windshield defroster vents and
demister vents. You can also use this setting to defog and clear the
windshield of a thin covering of ice.
GENERAL OPERATING TIPS
•To reduce fog build-up on the windshield during humid weather,
select defrost. Temperature and fan speed can also be increased to
improve clearing.
•To reduce humidity build-up inside the vehicle, do not drive with the
system off or with recirculated air engaged.
•Do not put objects under the front seats that will interfere with the
airflow to the back seats.
•Remove any snow, ice or leaves from the air intake area at the base
of the windshield.
•To improve the air conditioning cool down, drive with the windows
slightly open for 2-3 minutes after start-up or until the vehicle has
been aired out.
•A small amount of air may be felt from the floor vent regardless of
the air distribution setting that is selected.
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Front Seat and Rear Seat
Outboard Head Restraints
Rear Seat Center Head
Restraint
The head restraints consist of:
A. An energy absorbing head restraint.
B. Two steel stems.
C. Guide sleeve unlock and remove button.
D. Guide sleeve adjust and release button.
To adjust the head restraint, do the following:
•Raise: Pull up on the head restraint (A).
•Lower: Press and hold the guide sleeve adjust and release button (D)
and push down on the head restraint (A).
•Remove: Pull up the head restraint until it reaches the highest
adjustment position and then press and hold both the adjust and
release button (D) and the unlock and remove button (C), then pull
up on the head restraint.
•Reinstall: Align the steel stems into the guide sleeves and push the
head restraint down until it locks.
A
C
B
D
D
B
A
B
C
128Seats
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