2–41
Essential Safety Equipment
SRS Air Bags
*Some models.
Supplementary Restraint System (SRS) Precautions
The front and side supplementary restraint systems (SRS) include different types of air bags.
Please verify the different types of air bags which are equipped on your vehicle by
locating the “SRS AIRBAG” location indicators. These indicators are visible in the area
where the air bags are installed.
The air bags are installed in the following locations:
The steering wheel hub (driver air bag)
The front passenger instrument panel (front passenger air bag)
The outboard sides of the front seatbacks (side air bags) *
The front and rear window pillars, and the roof edge along both sides (curtain air bags) *
The air bag supplementary restraint systems are designed to provide supplementary
protection in certain situations so seat belts are always important in the following ways:
Without seat belt usage, the air bags cannot provide adequate protection during an accident.
Seat belt usage is necessary to:
Keep the occupant from being thrown into an in À ating air bag.
Reduce the possibility of injuries during an accident that is not designed for air bag
in À ation, such as roll-over or rear impact.
Reduce the possibility of injuries in frontal, near frontal or side collisions that are not
severe enough to activate the air bags.
Reduce the possibility of being thrown from your vehicle.
Reduce the possibility of injuries to lower body and legs during an accident because the
air bags provide no protection to these parts of the body.
Hold the driver in a position which allows better control of the vehicle.
A child who is too small to use a seat belt must be properly secured using a child-restraint
system (page 2-21 ).
Carefully consider which child-restraint system is necessary for your child and follow
the installation directions in this Owner's Manual as well as the child-restraint system
manufacturer's instructions.
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Essential Safety Equipment
SRS Air Bags
WARNING
Seat belts must be worn in air bag equipped vehicles:
Depending only on the air bags for protection during an accident is dangerous. Alone,
air bags may not prevent serious injuries. The appropriate air bags can be expected to
in À ate only in the ¿ rst accident, such as frontal, near frontal or side collisions that are
at least moderate. Vehicle occupants should always wear seat belts.
Children should not ride in the front passenger seat:
Placing a child, 12 years or under, in the front seat is dangerous. The child could be hit
by a deploying air bag and be seriously injured or even killed. A sleeping child is more
likely to lean against the door and be hit by the side air bag in moderate collision to the
front-passenger side of the vehicle. Whenever possible, always secure a child 12 years
and under on the rear seats with an appropriate child-restraint system for the child's
age and size.
Extreme Hazard! Never use a rear-facing child-restraint system on the front passenger
seat with an air bag that could deploy:
NEVER use a rearward facing child restraint on a seat protected by an ACTIVE
AIRBAG in front of it, DEATH or SERIOUS INJURY to the CHILD can occur.
Even in a moderate collision, the child-restraint system can be hit by a deploying air
bag and moved violently backward resulting in serious injury or death to the child. If
your vehicle is equipped with a front passenger air bag deactivation switch, always set
the switch to the OFF position when installing a rear-facing child-restraint system on
the front passenger seat.
Do not sit too close to the driver and front passenger air bags:
Sitting too close to the driver and front passenger air bag modules or placing hands or
feet on them is extremely dangerous. The driver and front passenger air bags in À ate
with great force and speed. Serious injuries could occur if someone is too close. The
driver should always hold onto only the rim of the steering wheel. The front seat
passenger should keep both feet on the À oor. Front seat occupants should adjust their
seats as far back as possible and always sit upright against the seatbacks with seat belts
worn properly.
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Essential Safety Equipment
SRS Air Bags
WARNING
Do not operate a vehicle with damaged air bag/seat belt pretensioner system
components:
Expended or damaged air bag/seat belt pretensioner system components must be
replaced after any collision which caused them to deploy or damage them. Only a
trained expert repairer, we recommend an Authorised Mazda Repairer can fully
evaluate these systems to see that they will work in any subsequent accident. Driving
with an expended or damaged air bag or pretensioner unit will not afford you the
necessary protection in the event of any subsequent accident which could result in
serious injury or death.
Do not remove interior air bag parts:
Removing any components such as the front seats, front instrument panel, the steering
wheel or parts on the front and rear window pillars and along the roof edge, containing
air bag parts or sensors is dangerous. These parts contain essential air bag components.
The air bag could accidentally activate and cause serious injuries. Always have an
Authorised Mazda Repairer remove these parts.
Properly dispose of the air bag system:
Improper disposal of an air bag or a vehicle with live air bags in it can be extremely
dangerous. Unless all safety procedures are followed, injury could result. Have an
expert repairer, we recommend an Authorised Mazda Repairer safely dispose of the air
bag system or scrap an air bag equipped vehicle.
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Essential Safety Equipment
SRS Air Bags
*Some models.
How the SRS Air Bags Work
Your Mazda is equipped with the following types of SRS air bags. SRS air bags are
designed to work together with the seat belts to help to reduce injuries during an accident.
The SRS air bags are designed to provide further protection for passengers in addition to the
seat belt functions. Be sure to wear seat belts properly.
Seat Belt Pretensioners
The pretensioners operate differently depending on what types of air bags are equipped. For
more details about seat belt pretensioner operation, refer to the SRS Air Bag Deployment
Criteria (page 2-56 ).
Front
The front seat belt pretensioners are designed to deploy in moderate or severe frontal, near
frontal collisions. In addition, during a side collision, the pretensioner operates on the side in
which the collision occurs.
Rear Outboard
*
The rear outboard seat belt pretensioners are designed to deploy in moderate or severe
frontal, near frontal collisions.
Driver Air Bag
The driver's air bag is mounted in the steering wheel.
When air bag crash sensors detect a frontal impact of greater than moderate force, the
driver's air bag in À ates quickly helping to reduce injury mainly to the driver's head or chest
caused by directly hitting the steering wheel.
For more details about air bag deployment, refer to "SRS Air Bag Deployment Criteria"
(page 2-56 ).