2017 SUBARU FORESTER Owners Manual

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
The driver’s and front passenger ’s SRS
frontal airbags use dual stage inflators.
The two inflators of each airbag are
triggered either sequentially or simulta-
neously, depending on the severity of
impact, in the case of the driver ’s SRS
frontal airbag and depending on the
severity of impact and the characteristic
of item(s) or person on the seat in the case
of the front passenger ’s SRS frontal
airbag.
After deployment, the SRS airbag imme-
diately starts to deflate so that the driver ’s
vision is not obstructed and the driver ’s
ability to maintain control of the vehicle is
not impaired. The time required from
detecting impact to the deflation of the
SRS airbag after deployment is shorter
than the blink of an eye.
Both when only the driver ’s SRS frontal
airbag deploys and the driver ’s and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags deploy,
the driver ’s and front passenger ’s seatbelt
pretensioners operate at the same time.
When the SRS airbag deploys, a sudden,
fairly loud inflation noise will be heard and
some smoke will be released. These
occurrences are a normal result of the
deployment. This smoke does not indicate
a fire in the vehicle.CAUTION
Do not touch the SRS airbag system
components around the steering
wheel and dashboard with bare
hands right after deployment. Doing
so can cause burns because the
components can be very hot as a
result of deployment.
The driver ’s SRS frontal airbag and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag are de-
signed as follows.
. to deploy in the event of an accident
involving a moderate to severe frontal
collision
. to function on a one-time-only basis
The driver ’s SRS frontal airbag and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag are not
designed as follows.
. to deploy in most lesser frontal im-
pacts
*1
. to deploy in most side or rear impacts
or in most roll-over accidents*2
*1: Because the necessary protection can be
achieved by the seatbelt alone.
*2: Because deployment of only the driver ’s
SRS frontal airbag or both the driver ’s and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags would not
protect the occupant in those situations.
SRS airbag deployment depends on the
level of force experienced in the passen-
ger compartment during a collision. That
level differs from one type of collision to
another, and it may have no bearing on
the visible damage done to the vehicle
itself.
!Example of accident in which the
driver ’s/driver ’s and front pas-
senger ’s SRS frontal airbag(s)
will most likely deploy
A head-on collision against a thick con-
crete wall at a vehicle speed of 12 to 19
mph (20 to 30 km/h) or higher activates
only the driver ’s SRS frontal airbag or both
driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS frontal
airbags. The airbag(s) will also be acti-
vated when the vehicle is exposed to a
frontal impact similar in fashion and
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magnitude to the collision described
above.!
Examples of the types of acci-
dents in which it is possible that
the driver ’s/driver ’s and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal
airbag(s) will deployOnly the driver ’s SRS frontal airbag or
both driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS
frontal airbags may be activated when the
vehicle sustains a hard impact in the
undercarriage area from the road surface
(such as when the vehicle plunges into a
deep ditch, is severely impacted or
knocked hard against an obstacle on the
road such as a curb).
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
!Examples of the types of accidents in which deployment of the driver ’s/
driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbag(s) is unlikely to occur1) The vehicle strikes an object, such as a
telephone pole or sign pole.
2) The vehicle slides under the load bed of a truck.
3) The vehicle sustains an oblique offset frontal impact.
4) The vehicle sustains an offset frontal collision.
5) The vehicle strikes an object that can move or deform, such as a parked
vehicle.
There are many types of collisions which
might not necessarily require deployment
of driver ’s/driver ’s and front passenger ’s
SRS frontal airbag(s). In the event of
accidents like those illustrated, the dri-
ver ’s/driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS
frontal airbag(s) may not deploy depend-
ing on the level of accident forces in-
volved.
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!Examples of the types of acci-
dents in which the driver ’s/dri-
ver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS
frontal airbag(s) are not de-
signed to deploy in most cases
The driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags are not designed to deploy
in the following cases.
.
If the vehicle is struck from the side or
from behind
. If the vehicle rolls onto its side or roof
. If the vehicle is involved in a low-speed
frontal collision
1) First impact
2) Second impact
In an accident where the vehicle is
impacted more than once, the driver ’s
and/or front passenger ’s SRS frontal
airbag(s) will deploy only once on the first
impact.
Example: In the case of a double collision,
first with another vehicle, then against a
concrete wall in immediate succession, once either or both of the driver
’s and front
passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags is/are
activated on the first impact, it/they will not
be activated on the second impact.
& SRS side airbag and SRS
curtain airbag
Your vehicle is equipped with a SUBARU
SRS curtain airbag system that complies
with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (FMVSS) No. 226.
The SRS side airbag is stored in the door
side of each front seat seatback, which
bears an “SRS AIRBAG” label.
Inamoderatetoseveresideimpact
collision, the SRS side airbag on the
impacted side of the vehicle deploys
between the occupant and the door panel
and supplements the seatbelt by reducing
the impact on the occupant ’s chest and
waist. The SRS side airbag operates only
for front seat occupants.
The SRS curtain airbag on each side of
the cabin is stored in the roof side
(between the front pillar and a point
behind the rear quarter glass). An “SRS
AIRBAG ”mark is located at the top of
each center pillar.
Inamoderatetoseveresideimpact
collision, the SRS curtain airbag on the
impacted side of the vehicle deploys
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
between the occupant and the side
window and supplements the seatbelt by
reducing the impact on the occupant’s
head.
In a rollover, SRS curtain airbags on both
sides of the vehicle deploy between the
occupant and the side window and sup-
plement the seatbelt by reducing the
impact to the occupant ’s head.
In an offset frontal collision, SRS side
airbags and SRS curtain airbags on both
sides of the vehicle deploy between the
occupant and the side window and sup-
plement the seatbelt by reducing the
impact to the occupant ’s head and chest.
! Operation
The SRS side airbag and SRS curtain
airbag can function only when the ignition switch is in the
“ON”position.
The driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS
side airbags and SRS curtain airbags
deploy independently of each other since
each has its own impact sensor.
An impact sensor, which senses impact
force, is located in each of the following
locations.
. In the left and right front doors
. In the left and right center pillars
. In the left and right rear wheel houses
. Under the rear center seat
. On both the right and left sides at the
front of the vehicle (front sub sensors)
Rollover sensor and frontal impact sensor
are located inside the airbag control
module which is located under the center
of the instrument panel.
If the impact sensor that is located under
the rear center seat and one of the center
pillar impact sensors or front door impact
sensors both sense an impact force above
a predetermined level in a side collision,
the control module causes both the SRS
side airbag and curtain airbag on the
impacted side to inflate regardless of
whether the rear wheel house impact
sensor on the same side senses an
impact. If the impact sensor that is located under
the rear center seat and one of the rear
wheel house impact sensors together
sense an impact force above a predeter-
mined level in a side collision, the control
module causes only the SRS curtain
airbag on the impacted side to inflate.
Even if a frontal collision occurs, both right
and left SRS side airbags and SRS curtain
airbags will deploy when the front sensor
and the control unit determine that the
impact results from an offset frontal colli-
sion.
The SRS side airbags and SRS curtain
airbags are designed to deploy when the
driver
’s SRS frontal airbag deploys or the
driver ’s and passenger ’s SRS frontal air-
bags deploy in a frontal collision, and also
when the system determines that the
collision is an offset frontal collision. The
SRS side airbags and SRS curtain air-
bags are basically designed not to deploy
in a frontal collision when the SRS frontal
airbags do not deploy or the system
determines that the collision is other than
an offset frontal collision.
If the rollover sensor detects rollover of the
vehicle, the control module inflates the
SRS curtain airbags on both sides. At this
time, the driver ’s and front passenger ’s
seatbelt pretensioners also operate at the
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same time.
After the deployment, the SRS side airbag
immediately starts to deflate. The time
required from detection of an impact to
deflation of an SRS side airbag after
deployment is shorter than the blink of
an eye.
The SRS curtain airbag remains inflated
for a while following deployment then
slowly deflates.
The SRS side airbag and SRS curtain
airbag deploy even when no one occupies
the seat on the side on which an impact is
applied.
When the SRS side airbag and SRS
curtain airbag deploy, a sudden, fairly loud
inflation noise will be heard and some
smoke will be released. These occur-
rences are a normal result of the deploy-
ment. This smoke does not indicate a fire
in the vehicle.
CAUTION
Do not touch the SRS side airbag
system components around the
front seat seatback with bare hands
right after deployment. Doing so can
cause burns because the compo-
nents can be very hot as a result of
deployment.After deployment, do not touch any
part of the SRS curtain airbag
system (from the front pillar to the
part of the roof side over the rear
seat). Doing so can cause burns
because the components can be
very hot as a result of deployment.
The SRS side airbag and SRS curtain
airbag are designed to deploy in the event
of an accident involving a moderate to
severe side impact collision. They are not
designed to deploy in most lesser side
impact. Also, they are not designed to
deploy in most rear impacts because SRS
side airbag and SRS curtain airbag
deployment would not help the occupant
in those situations.
The SRS curtain airbags are also de-
signed to deploy when the vehicle is in an
extremely inclined state such as during a
rollover. They are not designed to deploy
in most lesser inclined state.
Each SRS side airbag and SRS curtain
airbag are designed to function on a one-
time-only basis.
SRS side airbag and SRS curtain airbag
deployment depend on the level of force
experienced in the passenger compart-
ment during a side impact collision. That
level differs from one type of collision to another, and it may have no bearing on
the visible damage done to the vehicle
itself.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
!Example of the type of accidents
in which the SRS side airbag will
most likely deploy.
1) A severe side impact near the front seat
or the rear seat.
2) An offset frontal collision that is severe enough to deploy the front airbag.
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!Examples of the types of accidents in which the SRS curtain airbag will most
likely deploy.1) The vehicle is involved in a severe side
impact near the front seat or the rear
seat.
2) The vehicle rolls onto its side or the roof.
3) The angle of vehicle tip-up is marginal or the skidding vehicle ’s tires hit a curb-
stone laterally.
4) An offset frontal collision that is severe enough to deploy the front airbag.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
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