2018 FORD FLEX Owners Manual

The rear inflatable seatbelts function like
standard restraints in everyday usage.
During a crash of sufficient force, the
inflatable belt inflates from inside the
webbing.
The fully inflated belt's increased diameter
more effectively holds the occupant in the
appropriate seating position, and spreads
crash forces over more area of the body
than regular seatbelts. This helps reduce
pressure on the chest and helps control
head and neck motion for passengers. The rear inflatable seatbelts are designed
to inflate in frontal or near-frontal crashes,
some side impact crashes and rollovers.
The fact that the rear inflatable seatbelt
did not inflate in a crash does not mean
that something is wrong with the system.
Rather, it means the forces were not of the
type sufficient to cause activation.
Stowing the Rear Inflatable Seatbelt
The rear inflatable seatbelt has a snap
retainer for stowing the seatbelt against
the quarter trim panel when it is not in use.
This prevents the seatbelt tongue from
rattling against the side of the seat and
keeps it out of the way when folding or
tumbling the second row seats.
Press the retainer on the seatbelt onto the
mating snap to stow. To use the seatbelt,
pull it away from the quarter trim panel.
SEATBELT HEIGHT
ADJUSTMENT
WARNING
Position the safety belt height
adjuster so that the belt rests across
the middle of your shoulder. Failure
to adjust the safety belt properly could
reduce the effectiveness of the safety belt
and increase the risk of injury in a crash. 38
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Adjust the height of the shoulder belt so
the belt rests across the middle of your
shoulder. To adjust the shoulder belt height:
1.
Press the side release buttons and slide
the height adjuster up or down.
2. Release the buttons and pull down on the height adjuster to make sure it is
locked in place.
SEATBELT WARNING LAMP
AND INDICATOR CHIME This lamp illuminates and an
audible warning will sound if the
driver seatbelt has not been
fastened when the vehicle's ignition is
turned on.
Conditions of operation Then
If
The seatbelt warning light illuminates andthe warning chime sounds for a few seconds.
The driver seatbelt is not buckled before
the ignition switch is turned to the on posi- tion...
The seatbelt warning light and warningchime turn off.
The driver seatbelt is buckled while the
indicator light is illuminated and the warning chime is sounding...
The seatbelt warning light and indicatorchime remain off.
The driver seatbelt is buckled before the
ignition switch is turned to the on position...
SEATBELT REMINDER
Belt-Minder™
This feature supplements the safety belt
warning function by providing additional
reminders that intermittently sound a tone
and illuminate the safety belt warning light
when you are in the driver seat or you have
a front seat passenger and a safety belt is
unbuckled. The system uses information from the
front passenger sensing system to
determine if a front seat passenger is
present and therefore potentially in need
of a warning. To avoid the system turning
on the Belt-Minder feature for objects you
place on the front passenger seat, only the
front seat passengers receive warnings as
determined by the front passenger sensing
system.
If the Belt-Minder warnings expire
(warnings for about five minutes) for one
passenger (driver or front passenger), the
other passenger can still cause the
Belt-Minder feature to turn on.
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Then...
If...
The Belt-Minder feature will not activate.
You and the front seat passenger buckle
your safety belts before you switch the
ignition on or less than 1– 2 minutes elapse
after you switch the ignition on...
The Belt-Minder feature activates, the
safety belt warning light illuminates and a
warning tone sounds for 6 seconds every
25 seconds, repeating for about 5 minutes
or until you and the front seat passenger
buckle your safety belts.
You or the front seat passenger do not
buckle your safety belts before your vehicle
reaches at least 6 mph (9.7 km/h) and 1–
2
minutes elapse after you switch the ignition
on...
The Belt-Minder feature activates, the
safety belt warning light illuminates and a
warning tone sounds for 6 seconds every
25 seconds, repeating for about 5 minutes
or until you and the front seat passenger
buckle your safety belts.
The safety belt for the driver or front
passenger is unbuckled for about 1 minute
while the vehicle is traveling at least 6 mph
(9.7 km/h) and more than 1–
2 minutes
elapse after you switch the ignition on...
Deactivating and Activating the
Belt-Minder Feature WARNING
While the system allows you to
switch this feature off, the intent of
the system is to remind you to wear
your safety belt to improve your chance to
survive an accident. We recommend you
leave the system switched on for yourself
and others who may use the vehicle. Note:
The driver and front passenger
warnings switch on and off independently.
When you perform this procedure for one
seating position, do not buckle the other
position as this will terminate the process.
Note: If you are using MyKey, you cannot
disable the Belt-Minder. Also, if you have
previously disabled the Belt-Minder, it will
be re-enabled during the use of MyKey. See
MyKey ™ (page 57). . Read Steps 1–4 thoroughly before
proceeding with the programming
procedure.
Before following the procedure, make sure
that:
•
The parking brake is set.
• The transmission is in park (P).
• The ignition is off.
• The driver and front passenger safety
belts are unbuckled.
1. Switch the ignition on. Do not start the
vehicle.
2. Wait until the safety belt warning light turns off (about 1 minute). After Step
2, wait an additional 5 seconds before
proceeding with Step 3. Once you start
Step 3, you must complete the
procedure within 20 seconds.
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3. For the seating position you are
switching off, buckle then unbuckle the
safety belt three times at a moderate
speed, ending in the unbuckled state.
After Step 3, the safety belt warning
light turns on.
4. While the safety belt warning light is on, buckle and then unbuckle the
safety belt. After Step 4, the safety belt
warning light flashes for confirmation.
• This will switch the feature off for that
seating position if it is currently on.
• This will switch the feature on for that
seating position if it is currently off.
CHILD RESTRAINT AND
SEATBELT MAINTENANCE
Inspect the vehicle seatbelts and child
safety seat systems periodically to make
sure they work properly and are not
damaged. Inspect the vehicle and child
restraint seatbelts to make sure there are
no nicks, tears or cuts. Replace if
necessary. All vehicle seatbelt assemblies,
including retractors, buckles, front seatbelt
buckle assemblies, buckle support
assemblies (slide bar-if equipped),
shoulder belt height adjusters (if
equipped), shoulder belt guide on seat
backrest (if equipped), child safety seat
LATCH and tether anchors, and attaching
hardware, should be inspected after a
crash. Read the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions for additional
inspection and maintenance information
specific to the child restraint. We recommend that all seatbelt
assemblies in use in vehicles involved in a
crash be replaced. However, if the crash
was minor and an authorized dealer finds
that the belts do not show damage and
continue to operate properly, they do not
need to be replaced. Seatbelt assemblies
not in use during a crash should also be
inspected and replaced if either damage
or improper operation is noted.
Properly care for seatbelts. See Vehicle
Care (page 268).
SEATBELT EXTENSION WARNINGS
Persons who fit into the vehicle's
seatbelt should not use an extension.
Unnecessary use could result in
serious personal injury in the event of a
crash. Only use extensions provided free of
charge by Ford Motor Company
dealers. The dealer will provide an
extension designed specifically for this
vehicle, model year and seating position.
The use of an extension intended for
another vehicle, model year or seating
position may not offer you the full
protection of your vehicle ’s seatbelt
restraint system. Never use seatbelt extensions to
install child restraints.
Do not use a seatbelt extension with
an inflatable seatbelt.
Do not use extensions to change the
fit of the belt across the torso, over
the lap or to make the seatbelt
buckle easier to reach. 41
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If, because of body size or driving position,
it is not possible to properly fasten the
seatbelt over your lap and shoulder, an
extension that is compatible with the
seatbelts is available free of charge from
Ford Motor Company dealers. Only Ford
seatbelt extensions made by the original
equipment seatbelts manufacturer should
be used with Ford seatbelts. Ask your
authorized dealer if your extension is
compatible with your Ford vehicle restraint
system.
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The Personal Safety System provides an
improved overall level of frontal crash
protection to front seat occupants and is
designed to help further reduce the risk of
airbag-related injuries. The system is able
to analyze different occupant conditions
and crash severity before activating the
appropriate safety devices to help better
protect a range of occupants in a variety
of frontal crash situations.
Your vehicle's Personal Safety System
consists of:
•
Driver and passenger dual-stage airbag
supplemental restraints.
• Front seat outboard safety belts with
pretensioners, energy management
retractors (first row only) and safety
belt usage sensors.
• Driver seat position sensor.
• Front passenger sensing system.
• Passenger airbag off and on indicator
lamp.
• Front crash severity sensors.
• Restraints control module with impact
and safing sensors.
• Restraint system warning light and
backup tone.
• The electrical wiring for the airbags,
crash sensors, safety belt
pretensioners, front safety belt usage
sensors, driver seat position sensor,
front passenger sensing system and
indicator lights. How Does the Personal Safety
System Work?
The Personal Safety System can adapt the
deployment strategy of the safety devices
according to crash severity and occupant
conditions. A collection of crash and
occupant sensors provides information to
the restraints control module. During a
crash, the restraints control module may
deploy the safety belt pretensioners, one
or both stages of the dual-stage airbags
based on crash severity and occupant
conditions.
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™

PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION
WARNINGS
Airbags do not inflate slowly or
gently, and the risk of injury from a
deploying airbag is the greatest close
to the trim covering the airbag module. All occupants of your vehicle,
including the driver, should always
properly wear their seatbelts, even
when an airbag supplemental restraint
system is provided. Failure to properly wear
your seatbelt could seriously increase the
risk of injury or death. Even with advanced restraints
systems, properly restrain children
12 and under in a rear seating
position. Failure to follow this could
seriously increase the risk of injury or death. Do not place your arms on the airbag
cover or through the steering wheel.
Failure to follow this instruction
could result in personal injury. Keep the areas in front of the airbags
free from obstruction. Do not affix
anything to or over the airbag covers.
Objects could become projectiles during
airbag deployment or in a sudden stop.
Failure to follow this instruction could
result in personal injury or death. Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child restraint. Never place a
rear-facing child restraint in front of
an active airbag. If you must use a
forward-facing child restraint in the front
seat, move the seat upon which the child
restraint is installed all the way back. Do not attempt to service, repair, or
modify the supplementary restraint
system or associated components.
Failure to follow this instruction could
result in personal injury or death. WARNINGS
Several airbag system components
get hot after inflation. To reduce the
risk of injury, do not touch them after
inflation. If a supplementary restraint system
component has deployed, it will not
function again. Have the system and
associated components inspected as soon
as possible. Failure to follow this
instruction could result in personal injury
or death. The airbags are a supplemental restraint
system and are designed to work with the
seatbelts to help protect the driver and
right front passenger from certain upper
body injuries. Airbags do not inflate slowly;
there is a risk of injury from a deploying
airbag.
Note:
You will hear a loud bang and see a
cloud of harmless powdery residue if an
airbag deploys. This is normal.
The airbags inflate and deflate rapidly
upon activation. After airbag deployment,
it is normal to notice a smoke-like, powdery
residue or smell the burnt propellant. This
may consist of cornstarch, talcum powder
(to lubricate the bag) or sodium
compounds (for example, baking soda)
that result from the combustion process
that inflates the airbag. Small amounts of
sodium hydroxide may be present which
may irritate the skin and eyes, but none of
the residue is toxic.
While the system is designed to help
reduce serious injuries, contact with a
deploying airbag may also cause abrasions
or swelling. Temporary hearing loss is also
a possibility as a result of the noise
associated with a deploying airbag.
Because airbags must inflate rapidly and
with considerable force, there is the risk of
death or serious injuries such as fractures,
facial and eye injuries or internal injuries,
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particularly to occupants who are not
properly restrained or are otherwise out of
position at the time of airbag deployment.
Thus, it is extremely important that
occupants be properly restrained as far
away from the airbag module as possible
while maintaining vehicle control.
Routine maintenance of the airbags is not
required.
DRIVER AND PASSENGER
AIRBAGS
WARNINGS
Do not place your arms on the airbag
cover or through the steering wheel.
Failure to follow this instruction
could result in personal injury. Keep the areas in front of the airbags
free from obstruction. Do not affix
anything to or over the airbag covers.
Objects could become projectiles during
airbag deployment or in a sudden stop.
Failure to follow this instruction could
result in personal injury or death. Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child restraint. Never place a
rear-facing child restraint in front of
an active airbag. If you must use a
forward-facing child restraint in the front
seat, move the seat upon which the child
restraint is installed all the way back. The driver and front passenger airbags will
deploy during significant frontal and near
frontal crashes.
The driver and passenger front airbag
system consists of:
•
Driver and passenger airbag modules.
• Front passenger sensing system. · Crash sensors and monitoring
system with readiness indicator.
See Crash Sensors and Airbag
Indicator (page 50).
Proper Driver and Front Passenger
Seating Adjustment WARNING
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA)
recommends a minimum distance
of at least
10 in (25 cm) between an
occupant's chest and the driver airbag
module. To properly position yourself away from
the airbag:
•
Move your seat to the rear as far as you
can while still reaching the pedals
comfortably.
• Recline the seat slightly (one or two
degrees) from the upright position.
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