Sa f e ty belts
Autom atic safet y belt retractors
Every safety belt is equ ipped with an automa t ic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in a n accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv-
ing the belt lets you
move freely .
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten-
sioner that helps to t ighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
¢
page 146 . The function of the pretensioner is
mon itored by a warn ing light¢
page 17.
Convertible locking retracto r
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac-
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
¢ page 183 .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly pos it ioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious injury in an accident ¢
page 144,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k-
rest to which the center rea r safety belt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen-
ger will move forward with the backrest dur-
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle will reduce safety belt effec-
t iveness and can cause serious persona l in-
jury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrained
can be seriously injured by the safety be lt it-
self when it
moves from the stronger parts
144
of the body into critical areas like the abdo-
men.
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve-
hicle
¢ page 185.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to ¢
page 146 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi-
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 151 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustment to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can cause
serio us pe rsonal injury in an accident.
- The shou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fit well on the body. Hold t he belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so t hat it sits as low as pos -
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways f it
snug ly ¢
fig. 151. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by sh ifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
r=;, page 142 .
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