YOUR VOLVO
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Volvo Structural Parts StatementVolvo is one of the leading companies for car safety.
Volvo engineers and manufactures vehicles designed to help protect vehicle occupants inthe event of a collision. Volvos are designed to absorb the impact of a collision. This energy absorption systemincluding, but not limited to, structural compo-nents such as bumper reinforcement bars,bumper energy absorbers, frames, rails, fenderaprons, A-pillars, B-pillars and body panelsmust work together to maintain cabin integrityand protect the vehicle occupants. The supplemental restraint system including but not limited to air bags, side curtain airbags, and deployment sensors work togetherwith the above components to provide propertiming for air bag deployment. Due to the above, Volvo Car USA does not support the use of aftermarket, alternative oranything other than original Volvo parts forcollision repair. Volvo Car USA also recommends using Volvo- approved replacement glass. The use of after-market glass, particularly a windshield, canhave an adverse effect on collision avoidanceand advanced lighting systems. In addition Volvo does not support the use or re-use of structural components from an exist-ing vehicle that has been previously damaged. Although these parts may appear equivalent, itis difficult to tell if the parts have been previ-ously replaced with non-OE parts or if the parthas been damaged as a result of a prior colli-sion. The quality of these used parts may alsohave been affected due to environmentalexposure.
Related information
Data recording (p. 33)
Driver distraction A driver has a responsibility to do everything possible to ensure his or her own safety andthe safety of passengers in the vehicle andothers sharing the roadway. Part of thisresponsibility is avoiding distractions, includ-ing performing activities that are not directlyrelated to controlling the vehicle in the drivingenvironment.
Your new Volvo is, or can be, equipped with feature-rich entertainment and communica-tion systems. These include hands-free cellulartelephones, navigation systems, and multipur-pose audio systems. You may also own otherportable electronic devices for your own con-venience. When used properly and safely, theyenrich the driving experience. Improperly used,any of these could cause a distraction. For all of these systems, we want to provide the following warning that reflects the strongVolvo concern for your safety. Never use thesedevices or any feature of your vehicle in a waythat distracts you from the task of drivingsafely. Distraction can lead to a serious acci-dent. In addition to this general warning, weoffer the following guidance regarding specificnew features that may be found in your vehi-cle:
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WARNING
If your vehicle has become water-damaged in any way (e.g., soaked floor mats/stand-ing water on the floor of the vehicle), donot attempt to start the engine. This maycause airbag deployment, which couldresult in serious injury. Volvo recommendstowing the vehicle directly to an authorizedVolvo workshop. Before attempting to tow the vehicle:
1. Switch off the ignition for at least 10minutes and disconnect the battery.
2. Follow the instructions for manually overriding 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 work-shop.
If necessary, seek medical attention.
Related information
Safety (p. 42)
Driver/passenger-side airbags (p. 53)
Side airbags (p. 60)
Inflatable curtain (p. 60)
Driver/passenger-side airbags
As a supplement to the seat belts, the vehicle is equipped with driver and passenger sidefront airbags.
Driver/passenger side front airbags.
In a frontal collision, the airbags help protect the driver's and passenger's head, neck, faceand chest and the driver's knees and legs. A collision of a sufficiently violent force will trigger the sensors and one or more airbagswill inflate. The airbag helps cushion the initial impact of the collision for the passenger. The airbag deflates when compressed by the colli-sion. A small amount of powder will also bereleased from the airbag. This may appear to be smoke and is normal. The entire process, from inflation to deflation of the airbag, occurswithin tenths of a second.
NOTE
The sensors react differently depending on the circumstances of the accident andwhether or not the seat belt is used. Thisapplies to all belt positions. There may therefore be accident situations in which only one (or none) of the airbagsare deployed. The sensors monitor theimpact of the collision and react accord-ingly to deploy one, several or no airbags.
WARNING
The seat belt and the airbag work together. If the seat belt is not used or is used incor-rectly, the airbag may not provide theintended protection in a collision. To help prevent injury in the event the air- bag is deployed, passengers should sit asupright as possible, with their feet on thefloor and their backs against the seat back-rest.
WARNING
Volvo recommends contacting an author- ized Volvo workshop for repairs. Incorrectlyperformed repairs to the airbag systemcould impair function and lead to seriousinjury.
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Passenger's side airbag decal.
WARNING
Children must never be allowed in the front passenger's seat.
Occupants in the front passenger'sseat must never sit on the edge of theseat, sit leaning toward the instrumentpanel or otherwise sit out of position.
The occupant's back must be asupright as comfort allows and beagainst the seat back with the seat beltproperly fastened.
Feet must be on the floor, e.g., not onthe dash, seat or out of the window.
WARNING
No objects or accessory equipment, e.g. dashboard covers, may be placedon, attached to, or installed near the airbag cover (the area above the glovecompartment) or the area affected byairbag deployment.
There should be no loose articles, suchas coffee cups on the floor, seat, ordashboard area.
Never try to open the airbag cover onthe steering wheel or the passenger'sside dashboard. This should only bedone by a trained and qualified Volvoservice technician.
Failure to follow these instructions canresult in injury to the vehicle's occu-pants.
Related information
Airbags (p. 52)
Occupant weight sensor (p. 56)
Occupant weight sensor
The Occupant Weight Sensor (OWS) is designed to meet the regulatory require-ments of Federal Motor Vehicle SafetyStandard (FMVSS) 208 and is designed todisable (will not inflate) the passenger's sidefront airbag under certain conditions.
Occupant Weight Sensor (OWS) indicator light
Disabling the passenger's side front airbag
Volvo recommends that ALL occupants (adults and children) shorter than 140 cm(4 feet 7 inches) be seated in the back seat ofany vehicle with a front passenger side airbagand be properly restrained for their size andweight. The OWS works with sensors that are part of the front passenger's seat and seat belt. Thesensors are designed to detect the presence
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of a properly seated occupant and determine if the passenger's side front airbag should beenabled (may inflate) or disabled (will notinflate). The OWS will disable (will not inflate) the pas- senger's side front airbag when:
the front passenger's seat is unoccupied,or has small/medium objects in the frontseat,
the system determines that an infant ispresent in a rear-facing infant seat that isinstalled according to the manufacturer'sinstructions,
the system determines that a small child ispresent in a forward-facing child restraintthat is installed according to the manufac-turer's instructions,
the system determines that a small child ispresent in a booster seat,
a front passenger takes his/her weight offof the seat for a period of time,
a child or a small person occupies thefront passenger's seat.
The OWS uses a PASSENGER AIRBAG OFFindicator lamp which will illuminate and stayon to remind you that the passenger's sidefront airbag is disabled. The PASSENGERAIRBAG OFF indicator lamp is located in theoverhead console, near the base of the rear-view mirror.
NOTE
When the ignition is switched on, the OWS indicator light will illuminate for sev-eral seconds while the system performs aself-diagnostic test.
However, if a fault is detected in the system:
The OWS indicator light will stay on.
The SRS warning light will come on and stay on and a text message will be dis-played.
WARNING
If a fault in the system is detected and indi- cated as described, be aware that the pas-senger's side front airbag will not deploy inthe event of a collision. In this case, theSRS system and Occupant Weight Sensorshould be inspected by a trained and quali-fied Volvo service technician as soon aspossible.
WARNING
Never try to open, remove or repair any components in the OWS system. Thiscould cause the system to malfunction.Maintenance or repairs should only becarried out by an a trained and qualifiedVolvo service technician.
The front passenger's seat should notbe modified in any way. This couldreduce pressure on the seat cushion,which might interfere with the OWSsystem's function.
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Passeng- er's seatoccupancystatusOWS indi-cator lightstatus
Passenger'sside frontairbag sta-tus
Seat unoccu- pied OWS indi-cator lightlights upPassenger'sside front air-bag disabled
Seat occu-pied by lowweight occu- pant/object AOWS indi-
cator light lights up Passenger'sside front air-
bag disabled
Seat occu- pied byheavy occu-
pant/object OWS indi-
cator lightis not lit Passenger'sside front air-bag enabled
A
Volvo recommends that children always be properly restrained in appropriate child restraints in the rear seats.Do not assume that the passenger's side front airbag is dis-abled unless the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indicator lampis lit. Make sure the child restraint is properly installed. Ifthere is any doubt as to the status of the passenger's sidefront airbag, move the child restraint to the rear seat.
The OWS is designed to enable (may inflate) the passenger's side front airbag in the eventof a collision anytime the system senses that aperson of adult size is sitting properly in thefront passenger's seat. The PASSENGER AIR-BAG OFF indicator lamp will be off andremain off. If a person of adult size is sitting in the front passenger's seat, but the PASSENGER AIR- BAG OFF indicator lamp is on, it is possiblethat the person isn't sitting properly in theseat. If this happens:
Turn the vehicle off and ask the person toplace the backrest in an upright position.
Have the person sit upright in the seat,centered on the seat cushion, with theperson's legs comfortably extended.
Restart the vehicle and have the personremain in this position for about twominutes. This will allow the system todetect that person and enable the pas-senger's frontal airbag.
If the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF indica-tor lamp remains on even after this, theperson should be advised to ride in therear seat.
This indicates limitations in OWS classifica-tion capability. It does not indicate OWS mal-function.ModificationsIf you are considering modifying your vehiclein any way to accommodate a disability, forexample by altering or adapting the driver's orfront passenger's seat(s) and/or airbag sys-tems, please contact Volvo at: In the United StatesVolvo Car USA, LLCCustomer Care Center 1 Volvo DriveP.O. Box 914Rockleigh, New Jersey 076471-800-458-1552In CanadaVolvo Car Canada Ltd.Customer Care Centre9130 Leslie Street, Suite 101Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 0B91-800-663-8255
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WARNING
No objects that add to the total weight on the seat should be placed on thefront passenger's seat. If a child isseated in the front passenger's seatwith any additional weight, this extraweight could cause the OWS systemto enable the airbag, which mightcause it to deploy in the event of a col-lision, thereby injuring the child.
The seat belt should never be wrappedaround an object on the front passeng-er's seat. This could interfere with theOWS system's function.
The front passenger's seat belt shouldnever be used in a way that exertsmore pressure on the passenger thannormal. This could increase the pres-sure exerted on the weight sensor by achild, and could result in the airbagbeing enabled, which might cause it todeploy in the event of a collision,thereby injuring the child.
WARNING
Keep the following points in mind with respect to the OWS system. Failure tofollow these instructions couldadversely affect the system's functionand result in serious injury to the occu-pant of the front passenger's seat.
The full weight of the front seat pas-senger should always be on the seatcushion. The passenger should neverlift him/herself off the seat cushionusing the armrest in the door or thecenter console, by pressing the feet onthe floor, by sitting on the edge of theseat cushion, or by pressing againstthe backrest in a way that reducespressure on the seat cushion. Thiscould cause OWS to disable the front,passenger's side airbag.
WARNING
Do not place any type of object on the front passenger's seat in such a waythat jamming, pressing, or squeezingoccurs between the object and thefront seat, other than as a direct resultof the correct use of the AutomaticLocking Retractor/Emergency LockingRetractor (ALR/ELR) seat belt.
No objects should be placed under thefront passenger's seat. This could inter-fere with the OWS system's function.
Related information
Driver/passenger-side airbags (p. 53)
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Volvo has some very specific recommendations
Always wear your seat belt.
Airbags are a SUPPLEMENTAL safety device which, when used with a three-point seat belt can help reduce seriousinjuries during certain types of accidents.Volvo recommends that you do not dis-connect the airbag system in your vehicle.
Volvo strongly recommends that everyonein the vehicle be properly restrained.
Volvo recommends that ALL occupants(adults and children) shorter than 140 cm(4 feet 7 inches) be seated in the rear seatof any vehicle with a front passenger sideairbag.
Drive safely!
Related information
Safety (p. 42)
Child restraints (p. 65)
Activating and deactivating child safetylocks (p. 252)
Child restraints
Suitable child restraints should always be used when children travel in the vehicle.
Child restraint systems
Infant seat
There are three main types of child restraint systems: infant seats, convertible seats andbooster cushions. They are classified accord-ing to the child's age and size. The child restraint should be secured using a three-point seat belt, ISOFIX/LATCH anchorsor top tether anchors.
Convertible seat
WARNING
A child seat should never be used in the front passenger seat of any vehicle with afront passenger airbag - not even if the"Passenger airbag off" symbol near therear-view mirror is illuminated. If theseverity of an accident were to cause theairbag to inflate, this could lead to seriousinjury or death to a child seated in thisposition.
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WARNING
A child seat should never be used in the front passenger seat of any vehicle with afront passenger airbag - not even if the"Passenger airbag off" symbol near therear-view mirror is illuminated. If theseverity of an accident were to cause theairbag to inflate, this could lead to seriousinjury or death to a child seated in thisposition.
3.
Fasten the seat belt.
Fasten the seat belt by inserting the latch plate into the buckle (lock) until a distinctclick is audible.
Pull out the shoulder section of the seat belt.
4. Pull the shoulder section of the seat belt out as far as possible to activate the belt's automatic locking function.
NOTE
The locking retractor will automatically release when the seat belt is unbuckledand allowed to retract fully.
5. Press the infant seat firmly in place, let theseat belt retract and pull it taut. A sound from the seat belt retractor's automaticlocking function will be audible at this timeand is normal. The seat belt should now belocked in place.
Check that the infant seat is properly secured.
6. Press and pull the infant seat along thedirection of the seat belt to check that it is properly held in place by the seat belt.