Belt warning for drivers and front pas-
sengers
The7 seat belt warning lamp in the instru-
ment cluster is a reminder that all vehicle occu-
pants must wear their seat belts. It may light up continuously or flash. In addition, there may be
a warning tone.
Regardless of whether the driver's seat belt has
already been fastened, the 7seat belt warn-
ing lamp lights up for 6 seconds after each time
the ignition is switched on. After the engine has
been started, it goes out once the driver has
fastened the seat belt.
If the driver's seat belt is not fastened when the
engine is started, an additional warning tone will
sound. This warning tone stops after a maximum
of six seconds or once the driver's seat belt is
fastened.
If the vehicle's speed exceeds 15 mph
(25 km/h) once and the driver's seat belt is not
fastened, a warning tone sounds. The warning
tone sounds for 60 seconds or until the driver's
seat belt is fastened.
If the driver's seat belt is unfastened during the
journey, the seat belt warning is activated again.
Air bags
Introduction
The installation point of an air bag can be rec-
ognized by the SRS/AIRBAG or AIRBAG mark-
ing.
An air bag complements the correctly fastened
seat belt. It is no substitute for the seat belt. The
air bag provides additional protection in appli-
cable accident situations.
Not all air bags are deployed in an accident. The
different air bag systems function independ-
ently from one another (
Ypage 46).
However, no system available today can com-
pletely eliminate injuries and fatalities.
It is also not possible to rule out a risk of injury
caused by an air bag due to the high speed at
which the air bag must be deployed.
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If you do not sit in the correct seat position,
the air bag cannot protect as intended and
could even cause additional injury when
deployed. This poses an increased risk of
injury or even fatal injury.
To avoid hazardous situations, always make
sure that all of the vehicle's occupants:
Rhave fastened their seat belts correctly,
including pregnant women
Rare sitting correctly and maintain the great-
est possible distance to the air bags
Rfollow the following instructions
Always make sure that there are no objects
between the air bag and the vehicle's occu-
pants.
RAdjust the seats properly before beginning
your journey. Always make sure that the seat
is in an almost upright position. The center of
the head restraint must support the head at
about eye level.
RMove the driver's and front-passenger seats
as far back as possible. The driver's seat posi-
tion must allow the vehicle to be driven safely.
ROnly hold the steering wheel on the outside.
This allows the air bag to be fully deployed.
RAlways lean against the backrest while driv-
ing. Do not lean forward or lean against the
door or side window. You may otherwise be in
the deployment area of the air bags.
RAlways keep your feet in the footwell in front
o
f the seat. Do not put your feet on the dash-
board, for example. Your feet may otherwise
be in the deployment area of the air bag.
RFor this reason, always secure persons less
than 5 ft (1.50 m)tall in suitable restraint sys-
tems. Up to this height, the seat belt cannot
be worn correctly.
If a child is traveling in your vehicle, also
observe the following notes:
RAlways secure children under twelve years of
age and less than 5 ft (1.50 m)tall in suitable
child restraint systems.
RChild restraint systems should be installed on
the rear seats.
RAlways secure a child in a rearward-facing
child restraint system on a suitable rear seat.
The front-passenger front air bag cannot be
deactivated.
RAlways observe the instructions and safety
notes on "Children in the vehicle"
(
Ypage 47) and on the "Child restraint sys-
44Occupant safety
Safety