2017 SUBARU FORESTER back light

Front seats........................................................... 1-2Manual seat ........................................................ 1-4
Power seat (driver ’s seat —if equipped) .. ............ 1-5
Head restraint adjustment .................................... 1-8
Seat heater (if equipped).................................... 1-9Front seat heater (if equipped) ............................. 1-9
Rear seat heater (if equipped) ............................. 1-10
Rear seats........................................................... 1-11Armrest (if equipped) .......................................... 1-11
Head restraint adjustment ................................... 1-12
Folding down the rear seatback .......................... 1-13
Reclining the seatback (if equipped) ................... 1-15
Seatbelts............................................................. 1-16Seatbelt safety tips ............................................. 1-16
Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR) ................... 1-17
Automatic Locking Retractor/Emergency Locking Retractor (ALR/ELR) ......................................... 1-17
Seatbelt warning light and chime ........................ 1-18
Fastening the seatbelt ........................................ 1-18
Seatbelt maintenance ......................................... 1-24
Front seatbelt pretensioners ............................. 1-25Seatbelt with shoulder belt pretensioner .. ........... 1-25Seatbelt with shoulder belt and lap belt
pretensioners .................................................. 1-26
System monitors ............................................... 1-28
System servicing ............................................... 1-28
Precautions against vehicle modification ............ 1-29
Child restraint systems..................................... 1-29Where to place a child restraint system .............. 1-30
Choosing a child restraint system ...................... 1-32
Installing child restraint systems with ALR/ELR seatbelt ........................................................... 1-32
Installing a booster seat ..................................... 1-36
Installation of child restraint systems by use of lower and tether anchorages (LATCH) .............. 1-37
Top tether anchorages ....................................... 1-40
*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint
System airbag) ................................................ 1-42
General precautions regarding SRS airbag
system ............................................................ 1-42
Components ...................................................... 1-49
SUBARU advanced frontal airbag system ........... 1-51
SRS side airbag and SRS curtain airbag ............. 1-61
SRS airbag system monitors .............................. 1-69
SRS airbag system servicing ... .......................... 1-71
Precautions against vehicle modification ............ 1-72
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Front seats
Front seats
WARNING
.Never adjust the seat while driv-
ing to avoid loss of vehicle con-
trol and personal injury.
. Before adjusting the seat, make
sure the hands and feet of rear
seat passengers and cargo are
clear of the adjusting mechan-
ism.
. After adjusting the seat, push it
slightly to make sure it is se-
curely locked. If the seat is not
securely locked, it may move or
the seatbelt may not operate
properly.
. Do not put objects under the front
seats. They may interfere with
front seat locking and cause an
accident.
. Seatbelts provide maximum re-
straint when the occupant sits
well back and upright in the seat.
To reduce the risk of sliding
under the seatbelt in a collision,
the front seatbacks should be
always used in the upright posi-
tion while the vehicle is running.
If the front seatbacks are not used in the upright position in a
collision, the risk of sliding under
the lap belt and of the lap belt
sliding up over the abdomen will
increase, and both can result in
serious internal injury or death.
. The SRS airbags deploy with
considerable speed and force.
Occupants who are out of proper
position when the SRS airbag
deploys could suffer very serious
injuries. Because the SRS airbag
needs enough space for deploy-
ment, the driver should always
sit upright and well back in the
seat as far from the steering
wheel as practical while still
maintaining full vehicle control
and the front passenger should
move the seat as far back as
possible and sit upright and well
back in the seat.
WARNING
Place children in the rear seat
properly restrained at all times. The
SRS airbag deploys with consider-
able speed and force and can injure
or even kill children, especially if
they are not restrained or impro-
perly restrained. Because children
are lighter and weaker than adults,
their risk of being injured from
deployment is greater. For that rea-
son, we strongly recommend that
ALL children (including those in
child seats and those that have
outgrown child restraint devices)
sit in the REAR seat properly re-
strained at all times in a child
restraint device or in a seatbelt,
1-2

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Front seats
&Manual seat
! Forward and backward adjustment
Pull the lever upward and slide the seat to
the desired position. Then release the
lever and try to move the seat back and
forth to make sure that it is securely locked
into place. !
Reclining the seatback
Pull the reclining lever up and adjust the
seatback to the desired position. Then
release the lever and make sure the
seatback is securely locked into place.
The seatback placed in a reclined position
can spring back upward with force when
the lever is pulled. While operating the
lever to return the seatback, hold the
seatback lightly so that it may be raised
back gradually. !
Seat height adjustment (driver ’s
seat)1) When the lever is pushed down, the seat is lowered.
2) When the lever is pulled up, the seat rises.
The height of the seat can be adjusted by
moving the seat adjustment lever up and
down.
1-4

!Head restraint angle adjustment
The angle of the head restraint can be
adjusted in several steps. While maintain-
ing a suitable driving posture, adjust the
head restraint to a position where the back
of your head is as close to the head
restraint as possible.
To tilt:
Tilt the head restraint by hand to the
preferred position. A click will be audible
when the head restraint is locked.
To return:
Tilt the head restraint once as far forward
as it can go. The head restraint will
automatically return to the fully upright
position. Then, adjust the head restraint
again to the preferred angle.
Seat heater (if equipped)
CAUTION
.People with delicate skin may
suffer slight burns even at low
temperatures if they use the seat
heater for a long period of time.
When using the heater, always be
sure to warn the persons con-
cerned.
. Do not put anything on the seat
which insulates against heat,
such as a blanket, cushion, or
similar items. This may cause the
seat heater to overheat.
. When the seat is warmed enough
or before you leave the vehicle,
be sure to turn off the seat heater.
NOTE
Use of the seat heater for a long period
of time while the engine is not running
can cause battery discharge.
& Front seat heater (if
equipped)
The seat heater operates when the igni-
tion switch is either in the “ACC”or “ON ”
position.
Front seat heater switch
1) HIGH –Rapid heating
2) LOW –Normal heating
3) Off
A) Left-hand side
B) Right-hand side
To turn on the seat heater, push the “LOW ”
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Seat heater
–CONTINUED –1-9

1) Head restraint
2) Release button
To raise:
Pull the head restraint up.
To lower:
Push the head restraint down while
pressing the release button on the top of
the seatback.
To remove:
While pressing the release button, pull out
the head restraint.
To install:
Install the head restraint into the holes that
are located on the top of the seatback until
the head restraint locks. Press and hold
the release button to lower the head
restraint.When the rear-center seating position is
occupied, raise the head restraint to the
extended position. When the rear center
seating position is not occupied, lower the
head restraint to improve rearward visibi-
lity.
&
Folding down the rear seat-
back
WARNING
. When you fold down the seat-
back, check that there are no
passengers or objects on the
rear seat. Not doing so creates
a risk of injury or property da-
mage if the seatback suddenly
folds down.
. Never allow passengers to ride
on the folded rear seatback or in
the cargo area. Doing so may
result in serious injury or death.
. Secure all objects and especially
long items properly to prevent
them from being thrown around
inside the vehicle and causing
serious injury during a sudden
stop, a sudden steering maneu-
ver or a rapid acceleration.
. When you return the seatback to
its original position, shake the seatback slightly to confirm that
it is securely fixed in place. If the
seatback is not securely fixed in
place, the seatback may sud-
denly fold down in the event of
sudden braking, or objects may
move out from the cargo area,
which could cause serious injury
or death.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Rear seats
–CONTINUED –1-13

To return the seatback to its original
position, raise the seatback until it locks
into place and make sure that it is securely
locked referring to the following descrip-
tion.
Lock release knob
1) Unlocked
2) Locked
A) Unlocking marker in red
When the seatback is locked, the lock
release knob is automatically pulled into
the seatback and the unlocking marker,
which is red colored and attached to the
bottom of the lock release knob, will no
longer be visible.
WARNING
After returning the seatback to its
original position, confirm that the
unlocking marker of the lock release
knob is no longer visible. Failure to
do so could lead to serious injury or
death in the event of an accident.
When you return the seatback to its
original position, shake the seat-
back slightly to confirm that it is
securely fixed in place.
&Reclining the seatback (if
equipped)
WARNING
To prevent the passenger from slid-
ing under the seatbelt in the event of
a collision, observe the following
precautions:
. Keep the seatback in the upright
position while the vehicle is in
motion.
. Do not place objects such as
cushions between the passenger
and the seatback.
Otherwise, the risk of sliding under
the lap belt and of the lap belt sliding
up over the abdomen will increase,
and both can result in serious inter-
nal injury or death.
CAUTION
If your vehicle is equipped with a
cargo area cover, observe the fol-
lowing precautions.
. Be careful not to pinch your hand
between the head restraint and
the cargo area cover when you
recline the rear seat.
. Move the front cover of the cargo
area cover backward so that the
cover is not damaged by the
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Rear seats
–CONTINUED –1-15

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Seatbelts
reclined seatback. Refer to“Car-
go area cover ”F 6-14.
Pull the strap and adjust the seatback to
the desired position.
Then release the strap and make sure the
seatback is securely locked into place.
Seatbelts
& Seatbelt safety tips
WARNING
. All persons in the vehicle should
fasten their seatbelts BEFORE
the vehicle starts to move. Other-
wise, the possibility of serious
injury becomes greater in the
event of a sudden stop or acci-
dent.
. All belts should fit snugly in order
to provide full restraint. Loose
fitting belts are not as effective in
preventing or reducing injury.
. Each seatbelt is designed to
support only one person. Never
use a single belt for two or more
persons –even children. Other-
wise, in an accident, serious
injury or death could result.
. Replace all seatbelt assemblies
including retractors and attach-
ing hardware worn by occupants
of a vehicle that has been in a
serious accident. The entire as-
sembly should be replaced even
if damage is not obvious.
. Place children in the rear seat properly restrained at all times.
The SRS airbag deploys with
considerable speed and force
and can injure or even kill chil-
dren, especially if they are not
restrained or improperly re-
strained. Because children are
lighter and weaker than adults,
their risk of being injured from
deployment is greater. For that
reason, we strongly recommend
that ALL children (including
those in child seats and those
that have outgrown child re-
straint devices) sit in the REAR
seat properly restrained at all
times in a child restraint device
or in a seatbelt, whichever is
appropriate for the child
’s height
and weight.
Secure ALL types of child re-
straint devices (including for-
ward facing child seats) in the
REAR seats at all times.
NEVER INSTALL A FORWARD
OR REARWARD FACING CHILD
SEAT IN THE FRONT SEAT.
DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS IN-
JURY OR DEATH TO THE CHILD
BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD
TOO CLOSE TO THE SRS AIR-
BAG.
1-16

According to accident statistics,
children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seat-
ing positions. For instructions
and precautions concerning the
child restraint system, refer to
“Child restraint systems”F 1-29.
! Infants or small children
Use a child restraint system that is
suitable for your vehicle. Refer to “Child
restraint systems ”F 1-29.
! Children
If a child is too big for a child restraint
system, the child should sit in the rear seat
and be restrained using the seatbelts.
According to accident statistics, children
are safer when properly restrained in the
rear seating positions than in the front
seating positions. Never allow a child to
stand up or kneel on the seat.
If the shoulder portion of the belt crosses
the face or neck, move the child closer to
the belt buckle to help provide a good
shoulder belt fit. Care must be taken to
securely place the lap belt as low as
possible on the hips and not on the child ’s
waist. If the shoulder portion of the belt
cannot be properly positioned, a child
restraint system should be used. Never place the shoulder belt under the child
’s
arm or behind the child ’s back.
! Expectant mothers
Expectant mothers also need to use the
seatbelts. They should consult their doctor
for specific recommendations. The lap belt
should be worn securely and as low as
possible over the hips, not over the waist.
&Emergency Locking Retrac-
tor (ELR)
The driver ’s seatbelt has an Emergency
Locking Retractor (ELR).
The emergency locking retractor allows
normal body movement but the retractor
locks automatically during a sudden stop,
impact or if you pull the belt very quickly
out of the retractor.
& Automatic Locking Retractor/
Emergency Locking Retrac-
tor (ALR/ELR)
Each passenger ’s seatbelt has an Auto-
matic Locking Retractor/Emergency Lock-
ing Retractor (ALR/ELR). The Automatic
Locking Retractor/Emergency Locking
Retractor normally functions as an Emer-
gency Locking Retractor (ELR). The ALR/
ELR has an additional locking mode
“ Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR)
mode ”intended to secure a child restraint
system. When the seatbelt is once drawn
out completely and is then retracted even
slightly, the retractor locks the seatbelt in
that position and the seatbelt cannot be
extended. As the belt is rewinding, clicks
will be heard which indicate the retractor
functions as an ALR. When the seatbelt is
retracted fully, the ALR mode is released.
When securing a child restraint system on
the rear seats by the use of the seatbelt,
the seatbelt must be changed over to the
Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) mode.
When the child restraint system is re-
moved, make sure that the seatbelt
retracts fully and the retractor returned to
the Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR)
mode.
For instructions on how to convert the
retractor to the ALR mode and restore it to
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/Seatbelts
–CONTINUED –1-17