Proper adjustment of head restraints
Correctly adjust ed head restraints are an im-
portant part of your vehicle's occupant re-
straint system and can help to reduce the risk
of injuries in accident situations.
Fig. 100 Correctly adjust ed head restraint viewed from
the side
The head restraints must be correctly adjust -
ed to achieve the best protection .
.,. Adjust the head restrai nt so that the upper
edge of the restrai nt is level w it h the top of
your head, but no lower than eye level and
so it is as close to the back of your head as
possible
¢ fig. 100.
Adjusting head rest raints ¢ page 61 .
A WARNING
Driving withou t head restra ints or w it h
head restra ints that are not proper ly ad-
justed increases t he risk of serious or fatal
neck injur iy dramati cally. To help redu ce
t he risk of inj ury:
- Always drive wit h the head restra ints in
place and properly adjusted.
- Every person in the vehicle must have a
properly adju st ed head restr aint.
- Always make sure each person in the ve-
hicle properly adju st s the ir head re-
st raint . Each head rest raint must be ad-
justed according to occupants' size so
that the upper edge is as even with the
top of t he person's head, but no lower
than eye level and so it is as close to the
back ofto the head as possib le.
- Never attempt to adjust head restraint
wh ile driving. If you have driven off and
Dr iv ing S a fel y 97
must adjust the driver headrest for any
reason, first stop the vehicle safely be-
fore attempting to adjust the head re-
straint .
- Children must always be properly re-
strained in a child restraint that is appro-
priate fo r the ir age and size
¢ page 133.
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only re-
duce the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are
properly seated .
Improper seating positions can cause serious
injury or death. Safety belts can only work
whe n they are properly positioned on the
body. Improper seating positions reduce the
effectiveness of safety belts and wi ll even in-
crease the risk of injury and death by moving
t he safety belt to critic al areas of t he body .
I mproper seating posit ions also increase t he
risk of serious inju ry and death w hen an air-
bag deploys and strikes an occupant w ho is
not in the proper seating posit ion. A driver is
responsible for the safety of all vehicle occu-
pants and especially for children. Therefore :
.,. Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being
used ¢ ,& .
The following bullets list on ly some sample
positions t hat will increase the risk of serio us
injury and death . Our hope is that these exam-
ples will make you more aware of seating po-
sitions that are dangerous.
Therefore , whenever the vehicle is
moving:
- never stand up in the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- never kneel on t he seats
- never ride wit h t he seat back recl ined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- never lean up against the instrument panel
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit sideways
- never lean out the window
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