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Automati c safety belt retractors
Every safety be lt is equ ipped wit h an automatic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. Th is feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in an accident. The belt
may also 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 .
Safet y be lt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten-
sioner that helps to tighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated.
The funct ion of the pretensioner is monitored by
a warning light
r::>
page 16 .
Switchabl e locking feature
Every safety belt exc ept the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a switchable locking fea-
ture that
must
be used when the safety be lt is
used to attach a child safety seat. Be sure to read
the important information about this feature
r::;,
page 180 .
A
WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts ca n cause
ser ious injury in an accident
r::;,
page 147,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upr ight and belts are
prope rly pos itioned on the body.
- Always ma ke sure tha t the rear sea t bac k-
rest to wh ich t he cente r rear safety be lt 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 cras h .
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle will red uce safety belt effec-
t iveness and can cause serious personal in-
jury .
- A passenger who is not properly restrained
can be seriously inj ured by the safety be lt it-
self when it moves from the stronger parts
Safet y bel ts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo-
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child safety seat in
the vehicle
r::>
page 182.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi-
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 161
Safety belt posit ion
Standard features on your vehicle help you adjust
the position of the safety belt to ma t ch your body
size.
- be lt height adjustment for the front seats,
- he ight-adjustable
front seats .
A
WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can ca use
se rious personal injury in an acc ident.
- The shou lder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fit well on the body . Hold the belt
above t he latch t ongue and pull it evenly
across the chest so t hat it sits as low as pos-
sible on the pe lvis and t here is no pressure
on the abdomen . The belt should a lways fit
snug ly
r::>
fig. 161.
Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary .
- The lap be lt portion of the safety belt must
be positioned as low as possible across pel-
vis and never over the abdomen. Make sure
the belt lies flat and snug
r::>
fig. 161 .
Pull on
the belt to tighte n if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
inju ries by shifting its position on your body
~
147
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