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Safety during pregnancy It is important that seat belts are worn correctly during pregnancy and that pregnant driversadjust their seating position accordingly.
Seat belt
The seat belt should fit closely against the shoul- der, with the diagonal section between thebreasts and to the side of the stomach. The lap section of the seat belt should lie flat over the thighs and as far as possible under thestomach. Never let it ride upward. Removeunnecessary slack and make sure the seat beltfits as close as possible to the body. Make surethere are no twists in the seat belt.
Seating positionAs pregnancy progresses, pregnant driversshould adjust the seat and steering wheel to aposition that allows them to retain full control of the vehicle (which means they should be able toeasily reach the steering wheel and foot pedals).Try to maintain as much distance as possiblebetween the stomach and the steering wheel.
Related information
•
Safety (p. 42)
• Seat belts (p. 47)
• Manual front seats (p. 184)
• Power front seats
* (p. 185)
Occupant safety Safety is Volvo's cornerstone.
Volvo's concern for safetyOur concern for safety dates back to 1927 when the first Volvo rolled off the production line.Three-point seat belts (a Volvo invention), safetycages, and energy-absorbing impact zones weredesigned into Volvo vehicles long before it wasfashionable or required by government regulation. We will not compromise our commitment to safety. We continue to seek out new safety fea-tures and to refine those already in our vehicles. You can help. We would appreciate hearing your suggestions about improving automobile safety. We also want to know if you ever have a safety concern with your vehicle. Call us in the U.S. at: 1-800-458-1552 or in Canada at: 1-800-663-8255.
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Related information
•Safety (p. 42)
• Reporting safety defects (p. 44)
• Occupant safety (p. 43)
Whiplash Protection System The Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS) is designed to help reduce the risk of whiplash-type injuries. The system consists of energyabsorbing backrests and seat cushions as wellas specially designed head restraints in the frontseats.
WHIPS is activated in the event of a rear-end collision and adapted to the angle and speed ofthe collision and to the characteristics of the col-liding vehicle. When WHIPS is activated, the front seat back- rests move rearward and the seat cushions movedownward to change the seating positions of thedriver and front seat passenger. This movementhelps absorb some of the forces that could resultin whiplash.
WARNING
WHIPS is a supplement to the seat belt. Always wear your seat belt.
WARNING
Do not attempt to alter or repair the seat or WHIPS on your own. Volvo recommends con-tacting an authorized Volvo workshop. If the front seats have been subjected to severe stress, e.g. in a collision, the seatsmust be replaced. Even if the seats appearundamaged, some of their protective proper-ties may have been lost.
Do not place any objects on the floor behind or under the front seats or on the rear seat that could preventWHIPS from functioning correctly.
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WARNING
Do not squeeze box-like cargo between the rear seat cushion and the front seat backrest. If the rear seat backrests are folded down, cargo must be secured to prevent it from slid-ing forward against the front seat backrests inthe event of a collision.
WARNING
If a rear seat backrest is folded down or if a rear-facing child restraint is being used in therear seat, the seat in front must be moved for-ward so that it does not come into contactwith the backrest or child restraint.
Seating positionFor WHIPS to provide optimal protection, the driver and passenger must be seated correctlyand the system's function must not be impededin any way. Set the front seat to the correct seating position before starting to drive. The driver and the front seat passenger should sit in the center of the seat with their heads asclose as possible to the head restraints.
Related information
•Safety (p. 42)
• Manual front seats (p. 184)
• Power front seats
* (p. 185) •
Rear Collision Warning (p. 340)
Seat belts
Seat belts should always be worn by all occu- pants in your vehicle. Children should be prop-erly restrained using an infant seat, adjustablechild seat or booster cushion as determined byage, weight and height.
Most states and provinces make it mandatory for occupants of a vehicle to use seat belts.
Seat belt maintenanceCheck periodically that the seat belts are in goodcondition. Use water and a mild detergent forcleaning. Check the seat belt mechanism's func-tion as follows: attach the seat belt and pull rap-idly on the strap.
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WARNING
•Never repair the belt yourself. Repairs should only be performed by a trainedand qualified Volvo service technician.
• Any device used to induce slack into theshoulder belt portion of the three-pointbelt system will have a detrimental effecton the amount of protection available inthe event of a collision.
• The seat back should not be tilted too farback. The shoulder belt must be taut inorder to function properly.
• Do not use any type of child restraint inthe front passenger seat. We recommendthat children who have outgrown thesedevices sit in the rear seat with the seatbelt properly fastened.
Related information
• Safety (p. 42)
• Seat belt tensioners (p. 50)
• Buckling and unbuckling seat belts (p. 48)
• Door and seat belt reminders (p. 51)
Buckling and unbuckling seat belts
Make sure that all passengers have buckled their seat belts before starting to drive.
Buckling seat belts1. Pull out the belt slowly and make sure it is not twisted or damaged.
NOTE
Each seat belt is equipped with a retractor that will lock up in the following situations:
• if the belt is pulled out rapidly
• during braking and acceleration
• if the vehicle is leaning excessively
• when driving in turns
• if the automatic locking retractor/emer-gency locking retractor (ALR/ELR) is acti-vated. Each seat belt (except for the driv-er's) is equipped with an ALR function,which is designed to keep the seat belttaut when installing a child restraint. ALRis activated when the seat belt is pulledout as far as possible. If this is done, asound from the seat belt retractor will beaudible, which is normal. The seat belt cannow only be fed into the retractor, notpulled out. This function is automaticallydisabled when the seat belt is unbuckledand fully retracted.
2. Buckle the seat belt by pushing the latch
plate into the receptacle.
> A distinct "click" indicates that the belt islocked into place.
WARNING
Always insert the seat belt latch plate into the belt buckle on the correct side. Failure to doso could cause the seat belts and belt buck-les to malfunction in a collision. There is a riskof serious injury.
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3. The height of the seat belts in the front seats
can be adjusted.
Press the button on the seat belt holder and move the belt up or down. Position the belt as high as possible without it chafing against the neck.
The belt should be positioned closely against the inside of the shoulder (against the collarbone, not down overthe arm).
4. Tighten the lap section of the seat belt overthe hips by pulling the diagonal section upward toward the shoulder.
The lap section of the seat belt should be positioned low on the hips (not against the abdomen).
WARNING
Never use a seat belt for more than one occupant. Never wear the shoulder portion ofthe belt under the arm, behind the back orotherwise out of position. Such use couldcause injury in the event of an accident. Asseat belts lose much of their strength whenexposed to violent stretching, they should bereplaced after any collision, even if theyappear to be undamaged.
WARNING
Do not use clips or fasten the belts around hooks or other parts of the interior. This willprevent the seat belt from fitting properly.
WARNING
Never damage the seat belts and never insert any foreign objects into the belt buckle. Thismay cause the seat belts and belt buckles tomalfunction in a collision. There is a risk ofserious injury.
Unbuckling seat belts1. Press the red button on the seat belt recep-tacle and make sure the seat belt retracts fully into the retractor slot.
2. If it does not fully retract, guide the belt man- ually into the slot and make sure it does nothang loose.
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Related information
• Seat belts (p. 47)
• Seat belt tensioners (p. 50)
• Door and seat belt reminders (p. 51)
Seat belt tensioners
The vehicle is equipped with standard and elec- tric * seat belt tensioners that can help tension
the seat belt in a critical situation or collision.
Standard seat belt tensionersAll seat belts are equipped with a standard seat belt tensioner. In a collision of sufficiently violent force, the seat belt tensioners will tension the seat belts in orderto more effectively restrain the occupants.
Electric seat belt tensioners *The driver's and front passenger's seat belts areequipped with electric seat belt tensioners. The seat belt tensioners interact and can be acti- vated in conjunction with the City Safety andRear Collision Warning driver support systems. Incritical situations, such as if the vehicle brakessuddenly, begins to skid or runs off the road (e.gif the vehicle rolls into a ditch, lifts off the groundor hits an obstacle in the road), or if there is a riskof collision, the seat belts can be pulled taut bythe seat belt tensioner's electric motor. The electric seat belt tensioner helps to position the occupant more effectively in the seat, whichreduces the risk of the occupant striking the inte-rior of the passenger compartment and improvesthe effect of other safety systems such as theairbags. When a critical situation has passed, the seat beltand the electric seat belt tensioner are resetautomatically. However, they can also be resetmanually.
WARNING
Never attempt to alter or repair the seat belt on your own. Volvo recommends contactingan authorized Volvo workshop. If the seat belt has been exposed to extreme forces, e.g. in conjunction with a collision, theentire seat belt must be replaced. Even if theseat belt appears undamaged, some of itsprotective properties may have been lost. Alsoreplace the seat belt if it is worn or damaged.The new seat belt must be type approved andintended for the same seating position as thereplaced seat belt.
Related information
•
Seat belts (p. 47)
• Buckling and unbuckling seat belts (p. 48)
• Resetting the electric seat belt tensioners
*
(p. 51)
• City Safety
™ (p. 327)
• Rear Collision Warning (p. 340)
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Resetting the electric seat belt
tensioners*
The electric seat belt tensioners are designed to be reset automatically, but if the seat beltremains taut it can be reset manually.
1. Stop the vehicle in a safe location.
2. Unbuckle the seat belt and then rebuckle it.
> The seat belt and the electric seat belttensioner will be reset.
WARNING
Never attempt to alter or repair the seat belt on your own. Volvo recommends contactingan authorized Volvo workshop. If the seat belt has been exposed to extreme forces, e.g. in conjunction with a collision, theentire seat belt must be replaced. Even if theseat belt appears undamaged, some of itsprotective properties may have been lost. Alsoreplace the seat belt if it is worn or damaged.The new seat belt must be type approved andintended for the same seating position as thereplaced seat belt.
Related information
• Seat belt tensioners (p. 50)
• Seat belts (p. 47)
Door and seat belt reminders
This system is intended to remind occupants to buckle their seat belts and to alert the driver if adoor or the hood, tailgate or fuel filler door isopen.
Graphics in the instrument panel
Graphics in the instrument panel with various types of warnings. The warning colors for the doors/tailgate varydepending on the vehicle's speed.
The instrument panel graphic shows the seats where seat belts are buckled and not buckled. The same graphic also indicates if the hood, tail- gate, fuel filler door or any door is open. Confirm the graphic by briefly pressing the O
button on the right-side steering wheel keypad.
Seat belt reminder
Reminder light in ceiling console.
The seat belt reminder consists of an audible sig- nal and a symbol in the instrument panel. The reminder light varies depending on the vehi- cle's speed, driving time and distance driven. A seat belt status graphic in the instrument panel indicates when the driver's or a passenger's seatbelt is buckled or unbuckled. Child seats are not included in the seat belt reminder system.
Front seats
An audible signal and an indicator light remind unbuckled occupants to fasten their seat belts.
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Rear seat
The rear seat belt reminder has two functions:• To indicate which seat belts are buckled in the rear seats. This will also be displayed inan instrument panel graphic.
• To provide audio and visual reminders if anyseat belt in the rear seat is removed whilethe vehicle is in motion. The reminder willstop when the seat belt has been rebuckled.
Door/hood/tailgate and fuel filler door
reminder
If the hood, tailgate, fuel filler door or any door isnot properly closed, this will be indicated by agraphic in the instrument panel. Stop the vehiclesafely and close the open door, hood, etc.
If the vehicle is moving at a speedunder approx. 10 km/h (6 mph), theinformation symbol will illuminate in theinstrument panel.
If the vehicle is moving at a speed above approx. 10 km/h (6 mph), thewarning symbol will illuminate in theinstrument panel.
Related information
•Seat belts (p. 47)
• Buckling and unbuckling seat belts (p. 48)
Airbags
The vehicle is equipped with airbags and inflat- able curtains for the driver and passengers.
WARNING
• If the airbag warning light stays on after the engine has started or if it illuminateswhile you are driving, have the vehicleinspected by a trained and qualified Volvoservice technician as soon as possible.
• Never attempt to alter or repair any of thevehicle's safety systems yourself. Incor-rectly performed repairs to any systemcould impair function and lead to seriousinjury. All work on these systems shouldbe performed by a trained and qualifiedVolvo service technician.
WARNING
If your vehicle has become water-damaged in any way (e.g., soaked floor mats/standingwater on the floor of the vehicle), do notattempt to start the engine. This may causeairbag deployment, which could result in seri-ous injury. Volvo recommends towing thevehicle directly to an authorized Volvo work-shop. Before attempting to tow the vehicle:
1. Switch off the ignition for at least 10
minutes and disconnect the battery.
2. Follow the instructions for manually over- riding the shiftlock system.
Deployed airbags
WARNING
If any of the airbags have deployed:
• Do not attempt to drive the vehicle. Have it towed to an authorized workshop.
• If necessary, seek medical attention.
Related information
•
Safety (p. 42)
• Driver/passenger-side airbags (p. 53)
• Side airbags (p. 59)
• Inflatable curtain (p. 60)