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Occupant Weight Sensor
The Occupant Weight Sensor (OWS) is designed to meet the regulatory requirementsof Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard(FMVSS) 208 and is designed to disable (willnot inflate) the passenger's side front airbagunder certain conditions.
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G017724
Occupant Weight Sensor (OWS) indicator light
Disabling the passenger's side frontairbag
Volvo recommends that ALL occupants (adults and children) shorter than 4 feet7 inches (140 cm) be seated in the back seatof any vehicle with a front passenger side air-bag (p. 32), and be properly restrained fortheir size and weight. For child safety recom-mendations, see Child safety (p. 46). The OWS works with sensors that are part of the front passenger's seat and seatbelt (p. 28). The sensors are designed to detect the presence of a properly seatedoccupant and determine if the passenger'sside front airbag should be enabled (mayinflate) or disabled (will not inflate). The OWS will disable (will not inflate) the pas- senger's side front airbag when:
• the front passenger's seat is unoccupied, or has small/medium objects in the frontseat,
• the system determines that an infant ispresent in a rear-facing infant seat that isinstalled according to the manufacturer'sinstructions,
• the system determines that a small childis present in a forward-facing childrestraint that is installed according to themanufacturer's instructions,
• the system determines that a small childis present in a booster seat,
• a front passenger takes his/her weight offof the seat for a period of time,
• a child or a small person occupies thefront passenger's seat.
The OWS uses a PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator lamp which will illuminate and stayon to remind you that the passenger's sidefront airbag is disabled. The PASSENGERAIRBAG OFF indicator lamp is located in theoverhead console, near the base of the rear-view mirror.
NOTE
When the ignition is switched on, the OWS indicator light will go on for up to 10 sec-onds while the system performs a self-diagnostic test.
However, if a fault is detected in the system:
• The OWS indicator light will stay on
• The SRS warning light (p. 31) will come on and stay on
• The message
Pass. Airbag OFF Service
urgent will be displayed in the informa-
tion display.
WARNING
If a fault in the system is detected and indicated as described, be aware that thepassenger's side front airbag will notdeploy in the event of a collision. In thiscase, the SRS system and OccupantWeight Sensor should be inspected by atrained and qualified Volvo service techni-cian as soon as possible.
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WARNING
•Never try to open, remove, or repair any components in the OWS system.This could result in system malfunc-tion. Maintenance or repairs shouldonly be carried out by an a trained andqualified Volvo service technician.
• The front passenger's seat should notbe modified in any way. This couldreduce pressure on the seat cushion,which might interfere with the OWSsystem's function.
Passeng- er's seatoccu-pancy sta-tusOWS indicatorlight sta-tusPasseng- er's sidefront air-bag status
Seat unoc- cupiedOWS indi- cator lightlights up.Passenger's side front air-bag disabled
Seat occu- pied by lowweightoccupant/ object AOWS indi- cator lightlights upPassenger's side front air-bag disabled
Seat occu- pied byheavy occu-pant/objectOWS indi- cator lightis
not litPassenger's side front air-bag enabled
A
Volvo recommends that children always be properly restrained in appropriate child restraints in the rear seats.Do not assume that the passenger's side front airbag isdisabled unless the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicatorlamp is lit. Make sure the child restraint is properly instal-led. If there is any doubt as to the status of the passeng-er's side front airbag, move the child restraint to the rearseat.
The OWS is designed to enable (may inflate) the passenger's side front airbag in the eventof a collision anytime the system senses thata person of adult size is sitting properly in thefront passenger's seat. The PASSENGERAIRBAG OFF indicator lamp will be off andremain off. If a person of adult size is sitting in the frontpassenger's seat, but the PASSENGER AIR-BAG OFF indicator lamp is on, it is possiblethat the person isn't sitting properly in theseat. If this happens:
• Turn the vehicle off and ask the person to place the seatback in an upright position.
• Have the person sit upright in the seat,centered on the seat cushion, with theperson's legs comfortably extended.
• Restart the vehicle and have the personremain in this position for about twominutes. This will allow the system todetect that person and enable the pas-senger's frontal airbag.
• If the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indica-tor lamp remains on even after this, theperson should be advised to ride in therear seat.
This condition reflects limitations of the OWS classification capability. It does not indicateOWS malfunction.
ModificationsIf you are considering modifying your vehiclein any way to accommodate a disability, forexample by altering or adapting the driver'sor front passenger's seat(s) and/or airbagsystems, please contact Volvo at: In the USA Volvo Cars of North America, LLC Customer Care Center
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1 Volvo Drive P.O. Box 914Rockleigh, New Jersey 076471-800-458-1552 In Canada Volvo Cars of Canada Corp. National Customer Service9130 Leslie Street, Suite 101Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 0B91-800-663-8255WARNING
•No objects that add to the total weight on the seat should be placed on thefront passenger's seat. If a child isseated in the front passenger's seatwith any additional weight, this extraweight could cause the OWS systemto enable the airbag, which mightcause it to deploy in the event of a col-lision, thereby injuring the child.
• The seat belt should never be wrappedaround an object on the front pas-senger's seat. This could interfere withthe OWS system's function.
• The front passenger's seat belt shouldnever be used in a way that exertsmore pressure on the passenger thannormal. This could increase the pres-sure exerted on the weight sensor by achild, and could result in the airbagbeing enabled, which might cause it todeploy in the event of a collision,thereby injuring the child.
WARNING
• Keep the following points in mind with respect to the OWS system. Failure tofollow these instructions couldadversely affect the system's functionand result in serious injury to the occu-pant of the front passenger's seat:
• The full weight of the front seat pas-senger should always be on the seatcushion. The passenger should neverlift him/herself off the seat cushionusing the armrest in the door or thecenter console, by pressing the feet onthe floor, by sitting on the edge of theseat cushion, or by pressing againstthe backrest in a way that reducespressure on the seat cushion. Thiscould cause OWS to disable the front,passenger's side airbag.
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WARNING
•Do not place any type of object on the front passenger's seat in such a waythat jamming, pressing, or squeezingoccurs between the object and thefront seat, other than as a direct resultof the correct use of the AutomaticLocking Retractor/Emergency LockingRetractor (ALR/ELR) seat belt (Childrestraints (p. 47)).
• No objects should be placed under thefront passenger's seat. This couldinterfere with the OWS system's func-tion.
Related information
•
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) (p. 31)
Side impact protection (SIPS) airbags
As an enhancement to the structural side impact protection built into your vehicle, it isalso equipped with Side Impact ProtectionSystem (SIPS) airbags.
G032949
Location of the side impact (SIPS) airbags (front seats only) The SIPS airbag system is designed to help increase occupant protection in the event ofcertain side impact collisions. The SIPS air-bags are designed to deploy only during cer-tain side-impact collisions, depending on thecrash severity, angle, speed and point ofimpact.
Driver's side SIPS airbag
Passenger's side SIPS airbag
NOTE
SIPS airbag deployment (one airbag) occurs only on the side of the vehicleaffected by the impact. The airbags are notdesigned to deploy in all side impact situa-tions.
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Components in the SIPS airbag systemThis SIPS airbag system consists of a gas generator, the side airbag modules built intothe outboard sides of both front seat back-rests, and electronic sensors/wiring.WARNING
•The SIPS airbag system is a supple- ment to the structural Side ImpactProtection System and the three-pointseat belt system. It is not designed todeploy during collisions from the frontor rear of the vehicle or in rollover sit-uations.
• The use of seat covers on the frontseats may impede SIPS airbag deploy-ment.
• No objects, accessory equipment orstickers may be placed on, attached toor installed near the SIPS airbag sys-tem or in the area affected by SIPS air-bag deployment.
• Never try to open or repair any compo-nents of the SIPS airbag system. Thisshould be done only by a trained andqualified Volvo service technician.
• In order for the SIPS airbag to provideits best protection, both front seatoccupants should sit in an uprightposition with the seat belt properly fas-tened.
• Failure to follow these instructions canresult in injury to the occupants of thevehicle in the event of an accident.
Related information
•
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) (p. 31)
• Front airbags (p. 32)
• Inflatable Curtain (IC) (p. 41)
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Inflatable Curtain (IC)
The inflatable curtain is designed to help pro- tect the heads of the occupants of the frontseats and the occupant of the outboard rearseating positions in certain side impact colli-sions.
This system consists of inflatable curtains located along the sides of the roof liners,stretching from the center of both front sidewindows to the rear edge of the rear sidedoor windows. In certain side impacts, both the Inflatable
Curtain (IC) and the Side Impact Airbag Sys- tem (p. 39) (SIPS airbag) will deploy. The ICand the SIPS airbag deploy simultaneously.
NOTE
If the inflatable curtain deploys, it remains inflated for approximately 3 seconds.
WARNING
• The IC system is a supplement to the Side Impact Protection System. It isnot designed to deploy during colli-sions from the rear of the vehicle.
• Never try to open or repair any compo-nents of the IC system. This should bedone only by a trained and qualifiedVolvo service technician.
• Never hang heavy items from the ceil-ing handles. This could impededeployment of the Inflatable Curtain.
• The cargo area and rear seat shouldnot be loaded to a level higher than2 in. (5 cm) below the upper edge ofthe rear side windows. Objects placedhigher than this level could impede thefunction of the Inflatable Curtain.
WARNING
In order for the IC to provide its best pro- tection, both front seat occupants andboth outboard rear seat occupants shouldsit in an upright position with the seat beltproperly fastened; adults using the seatbelt and children using the proper childrestraint system. Only adults should sit inthe front seats. Children must never beallowed in the front passenger seat, Childsafety (p. 46) for guidelines. Failure tofollow these instructions can result in injuryto the vehicle occupants in an accident.
Related information
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Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) (p. 31)
• Front airbags (p. 32)
• Child safety (p. 46)
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44* Option/accessory, for more information, see Introduction.
Rollover Protection System (ROPS)
Volvo's Roll-Over Protection System (ROPS) utilizes the Roll Stability Control (RSC) func-tion and has been designed to help minimizethe risk of a rollover in emergency maneuversor if a skid should occur. RSC uses a gyroscopic sensor that registers the amount of change in the lateral angle atwhich the vehicle is leaning. Using this infor-mation, RSC calculates the likelihood of arollover. If there is an imminent risk of a roll-over, the stability system is activated, powerto the engine is cut and the brakes areapplied to one or more of the wheels until thevehicle regains stability.
WARNING
The vehicle’s stability systems, including ROPS and RSC, do not replace thedriver’s responsibility for operating thevehicle in a safe manner. Speed and driv-ing style should always be adapted to thecurrent road, traffic and weather condi-tions. Posted speed limits should alwaysbe respected.
Crash mode – general information
After a collision, the functionality of some of the vehicle's systems may be reduced as asafety precaution.
Warning symbol: analog instrument panel
Warning symbol: digital instrument panel* If the vehicle has been involved in a collision, the text
Safety mode See manual may
appear in the information display.
NOTE
This text can only be shown if the display is undamaged and the vehicle's electricalsystem is intact.
Crash mode is a feature that is triggered if one or more of the safety systems (e.g.front (p. 32) or side airbags (p. 39), an inflat-able curtain (p. 41), or one or more of the seatbelt pretensioners) has deployed. The colli-sion may have damaged an important func-tion in the vehicle, such as the fuel lines, sen-sors for one of the safety systems, the brakesystem, etc.
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WARNING
•Do not use child safety seats or child booster cushions/backrests in thefront passenger's seat. We also rec-ommend that children under 4 feet7 inches (140 cm) in height who haveoutgrown these devices sit in the rearseat with the seat belt fastened.
• On hot days, the temperature in thevehicle interior can rise very quickly.Exposure to these high temperaturesfor even a short period of time cancause heat-related injury or death.Small children are particularly at risk.
Child seat should always be registered. See Child restraints (p. 47) for more information.
Volvo's recommendationsWhy does Volvo believe that no child shouldsit in the front seat of a car? It's quite simplereally. A front airbag (p. 32) is a very powerfuldevice designed, by law, to help protect anadult. Because of the size of the airbag and its speed of inflation, a child should never beplaced in the front seat, even if he or she isproperly belted or strapped into a child safetyseat. Volvo has been an innovator in safetyfor over seventy-five years, and we'll continueto do our part. But we need your help. Pleaseremember to put your children in the backseat, and buckle them up.
Volvo has some very specific recommendations:
•
Always wear your seat belt (p. 28).
• Airbags are a SUPPLEMENTAL safety device which, when used with a three-point seat belt can help reduce seriousinjuries during certain types of accidents.Volvo recommends that you do not dis-connect the airbag system in your vehi-cle.
• Volvo strongly recommends that every-one in the vehicle be properly restrained.
• Volvo recommends that ALL occupants(adults and children) shorter than 4 feet7 inches (140 cm) be seated in the backseat of any vehicle with a front passengerside airbag.
• Drive safely!
Related information
• Infant seats (p. 49)
• Convertible seats (p. 51)
• Booster cushions (p. 54)
• Integrated booster cushion – generalinformation (p. 57)
• Child safety locks (p. 61)
• Top tether anchors (p. 56)
Child restraints
Suitable child restraints should always be used when children travel in the vehicle.
Child restraint systems
G022840
Infant seat
There are three main types of child restraint systems: infant seats (p. 49), convertibleseats (p. 51), and booster cush-ions (p. 54). They are classified according tothe child's age and size. The following section provides general infor-
mation on securing a child restraint using a
three-point seat belt (p. 28). Refer to ISOFIX/ LATCH lower anchors (p. 55) and Top tetheranchors (p. 56) for information on securinga child restraint using ISOFIX/LATCH loweranchors and/or top tether anchorages.