Safety precautions
Adjusting the seats so that you are sit-
ting in a safe, comfortable position
plays an important role in driver and
passenger safety together with the
seat belts and air bags in an accident.
Air bags
You can take steps to reduce the risk
of being injured by an inflating air
bag. Sitting too close to an air bag
greatly increases the risk of injury in
the event the air bag inflates.
Seat belts
Always fasten your seat belt before
starting any trip.
At all times, passengers should sit
upright and be properly restrained.
Infants and small children must be
restrained in appropriate child
restraint systems. Children who have
outgrown a booster seat and adults
must be restrained using the seat
belts.
Safety features of your vehicle
35
WARNING
Do not use a cushion that
reduces friction between the
seat and the passenger. The
passenger's hips may slide
under the lap portion of the seat
belt during an accident or a
sudden stop. Serious or fatal
internal injuries could result
because the seat belt cannot
operate normally.
WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious
injury or death from an inflating
air bag, take the following pre-
cautions:
•Adjust the driver’s seat as far to
the rear as possible while main-
taining the ability to maintain
full control of the vehicle.
•Adjust the front passenger seat
as far to the rear as possible.
•Hold the steering wheel by the
rim with hands at the 9 o’clock
and 3 o’clock positions to mini-
mize the risk of injuries to your
hands and arms.
•NEVER place anything or any-
one between the steering wheel
and the air bag.
•Do not allow the front passen-
ger to place feet or legs on the
dashboard to minimize the risk
of leg injuries.
Safety features of your vehicle
6 3
Front seatsWARNING
Take the following precautions
when adjusting your seat belt:
•NEVER use one seat belt for
more than one occupant.
•Always position the seatback
upright with the lap portion of
the seat belt snug and low
across the hips.
•NEVER allow children or small
infants to ride in a passenger’s
lap.
•Do not route the seat belt
across your neck, across sharp
edges, or reroute the shoulder
strap away from your body.
•Do not allow the seat belt to
become caught or jammed.
WARNING
Take the following precautions
when adjusting your seat:
•NEVER attempt to adjust the
seat while the vehicle is mov-
ing. The seat could respond
with unexpected movement
and may cause loss of vehicle
control resulting in an acci-
dent.
•Do not place anything under
the front seats. Loose objects
in the driver’s foot area could
interfere with the operation of
the foot pedals, causing an
accident.
•Do not allow anything to inter-
fere with the normal position
and proper locking of the seat-
back.
•Do not place a cigarette lighter
on the floor or seat. When you
operate the seat, gas may exit
out of the lighter causing a fire.
WARNING
To prevent injury:
•Do not adjust your seat while
wearing your seat belt.
Moving the seat cushion for-
ward may cause strong pres-
sure on your abdomen.
•Do not allow your hands or
fingers to get caught in the
seat mechanisms while the
seat is moving.
•Use extreme caution when
picking small objects trapped
under the seats or between
the seat and the center con-
sole. Your hands might be cut
or injured by the sharp edges
of the seats mechanism.
Safety features of your vehicle
319
To reinstall the headrest:
1. Recline the seatback.
2. Put the headrest poles (3) into the
holes while pressing the release
button (1).
3. Adjust the headrest to the appropri-
ate height.Seat warmers
Seat warmers are provided to warm
the seats during cold weather.
WARNING
Always make sure the headrest
locks into position after rein-
stalling and adjusting it to prop-
erly protect the occupants.
WARNING
The seat warmers can cause a
SERIOUS BURN, even at low
temperatures and especially if
used for long periods of time.
Passengers must be able to feel
if the seat is becoming too warm
so they can turn it off, if needed.
People who cannot detect tem-
perature change or pain to the
skin should use extreme cau-
tion, especially the following
types of passengers:
•Infants, children, elderly or
disabled persons, or hospital
outpatients.
•People with sensitive skin or
who burn easily.
•Fatigued individuals.
•Intoxicated individuals.
•People taking medication that
can cause drowsiness or
sleepiness.
WARNING
NEVER place anything on the
seat that insulates against heat
when the seat warmer is in oper-
ation, such as a blanket or seat
cushion. This may cause the
seat warmer to overheat, caus-
ing a burn or damage to the seat.
CAUTION
To prevent damage to the seat
warmers and seats:
•Never use a solvent such as
paint thinner, benzene, alco-
hol or gasoline to clean the
seats.
•Do not place heavy or sharp
objects on seats equipped
with seat warmers.
Seat Belt – Passenger’s 3-point
system with combination locking
retractor
This type of seat belt combines the
features of both an emergency lock-
ing retractor seat belt and an auto-
matic locking retractor seat belt.
Combination retractor type seat belts
are installed in the rear seat positions
to help accommodate the installation
of child restraint systems. Although a
combination retractor is also installed
in the front passenger seat position,
NEVER place any infant restraint sys-
tem in the front seat of the vehicle.
To fasten your seat belt:
Pull the seat belt out of the retractor
and insert the metal tab into the
buckle. There will be an audible
"click" when the tab locks into the
buckle. When not securing a child
restraint, the seat belt operates in the
same way as the driver's seat belt
(Emergency Locking Retractor
Type). It automatically adjusts to the
proper length only after the lap belt
portion of the seat belt is adjusted
manually so that it fits snugly across
your hips.
Safety features of your vehicle
325
OLMB033025
WARNING
Improperly positioned seat belts
may increase the risk of serious
injury in an accident. Take the fol-
lowing precautions when adjust-
ing the seat belt:
•Position the lap portion of the
seat belt as low as possible
across your hips, not on your
waist, so that it fits snugly.
(Continued)
(Continued)
•Position one arm under the
shoulder belt and the other over
the belt, as shown in the illus-
tration.
•Always position the shoulder
belt anchor into the locked
position at the appropriate
height.
•Never position the shoulder
belt across your neck or face.
When the seat belt is fully extended
from the retractor to allow the instal-
lation of a child restraint system, the
seat belt operation changes to allow
the belt to retract, but not to extend
(Automatic Locking Retractor Type).
Refer to “Using a Child Restraint
System” in this chapter.
✽NOTICE
Although the seat belt retractor pro-
vides the same level of protection for
seated passengers in either emer-
gency or automatic locking modes,
the emergency locking mode allows
seated passengers to move freely in
their seat while keeping some tension
on the belt. During a collision or sud-
den stop, the retractor automatically
locks the belt to help restrain your
body. To deactivate the automatic
locking mode, allow the unbuckled
seat belt to fully retract.
When using the rear center seat belt,
the buckle with the “CENTER” mark
must be used.To release your seat belt:
Press the release button (1) in the
locking buckle.
When it is released, the belt should
automatically draw back into the
retractor. If this does not happen,
check the belt to be sure it is not twist-
ed, then try again.
Safety features of your vehicle
26 3
B180A01NF-1OMD030018N
Safety features of your vehicle
341
Securing a child restraint with a
lap belt or lap/shoulder belt
When not using the LATCH system,
all child restraints must be secured to
a vehicle rear seat with the lap part
of a lap/shoulder belt.
Automatic lock mode
Since all passenger seat belts move
freely under normal conditions and
only lock under extreme or emer-
gency conditions (emergency locking
mode), you must manually pull the
seat belt all the way out to shift the
retractor to the “Automatic Locking”
mode to secure a child restraint.
The “Automatic Locking” mode will
help prevent the normal movement
of the child in the vehicle from caus-
ing the seat belt to loosen and com-
promise the child restraint system. To
secure a child restraint system, use
the following procedure.To install a child restraint system on
the rear seats, do the following:
1. Place the child restraint system on
a rear seat and route the lap/shoul-
der belt around or through the child
restraint, following the restraint
manufacturer’s instructions.
Be sure the seat belt webbing is
not twisted.
✽NOTICE
When using the rear center seat belt,
you should also refer to “3-point Rear
Center Seat Belt” in this chapter.
OLMB033044
WARNING
ALWAYS place a rear-facing
child restraint in the rear seat of
the vehicle.
Placing a rear-facing child
restraint in the front seat can
result in serious injury or death
if the child restraint is struck by
an inflating air bag.
Safety features of your vehicle
42 32. Fasten the lap/shoulder belt latch
into the buckle. Listen for the dis-
tinct “click” sound.
✽NOTICE
Position the release button so that it
is easy to access in case of an emer-
gency.
3. Pull the shoulder portion of the
seat belt all the way out. When the
shoulder portion of the seat belt is
fully extended, it will shift the
retractor to the “Automatic
Locking” (child restraint) mode.4. Slowly allow the shoulder portion
of the seat belt to retract and listen
for an audible “clicking” or “ratchet-
ing” sound. This indicates that the
retractor is in the “Automatic
Locking” mode. If no distinct sound
is heard, repeat steps 3 and 4.
OLMB033045OMD030054AOMD030055A
Safety features of your vehicle
343
5. Remove as much slack from the
belt as possible by pushing down
on the child restraint system while
feeding the shoulder belt back into
the retractor.
6. Push and pull on the child restraint
system to confirm that the seat
belt is holding it firmly in place. If it
is not, release the seat belt and
repeat steps 2 through 6.
7. Double check that the retractor is
in the “Automatic Locking” mode
by attempting to pull more of the
seat belt out of the retractor. If you
cannot, the retractor is in the
“Automatic Locking” mode.
If your CRS manufacturer instructs or
recommends you to use a tether
anchor with the lap/shoulder belt,
refer to the previous pages for more
information.✽NOTICE
When the seat belt is allowed to
retract to its fully stowed position, the
retractor will automatically switch
from the “Automatic Locking” mode
to the emergency lock mode for nor-
mal adult usage.
To remove the child restraint, press
the release button on the buckle and
then pull the lap/shoulder belt out of
the restraint and allow the seat belt
to retract fully.
WARNING
If the retractor is not in the
“Automatic Locking” mode, the
child restraint can move when
your vehicle turns or stops sud-
denly. A child can be seriously
injured or killed if the child
restraint is not properly anchored
in the car, including manually
pulling the seat belt all the way
out to shift the rectractor to the
“Automatic Locking” mode.