Occupant Safety - Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Operator's Manual

the seat belt in a collision. If you slide under
it, the seat belt would apply force at the
abdomen or neck. That could cause serious
or even fatal injuries. The seat backrest and
seat belt provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in a position that is as upright as
possible and the seat belt is properly
positioned on the body.
G
Warning
Never let more people ride in the vehicle than
there are seat belts available. Make sure
everyone riding in the vehicle is correctly
restrained with a separate seat belt. Never
use a seat belt for more than one person at a
time.
G
Warning
Damaged seat belts or seat belts that have
been subjected to stress in an accident must
be replaced and their anchoring points must
also be checked.
Only use seat belts which have been approved
by the distributor named on the inside of the
front cover.
Do not make any modifications to the seat
belts. This can lead to unintended activation
of the ETDs or to their failure to activate when
necessary.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this may
severely weaken them. In a crash they may
not be able to provide adequate protection.
Have all work carried out only by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized Sprinter
Dealer.
Proper use of the seat belts
G
Warning
USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY
Seat belts can only protect when used
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properly. Never wear seat belts in any other
way than as described in this section, as

Occupant safety

that could result in serious injuries in case
of an accident.
Each occupant should wear their seat belt
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at all times, because seat belts help reduce
the likelihood of and potential severity of
injuries in accidents, including rollovers.
The integrated restraint system includes
SRS (driver's front air bag, front-passenger
front air bag, side impact air bags, window
curtain air bags for door windows),
Emergency Tensioning Devices, seat belt
force limiters, and front seat knee bolsters.
The system is designed to enhance the
protection offered to properly belted
occupants in certain frontal (front air bags
and ETDs) and side (side impact air bags,
window curtain air bags, and ETDs) impacts
which exceed preset deployment
thresholds and in certain rollovers (window
curtain air bags and ETDs).
Never wear the shoulder belt under your
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arm, across your neck or not routed across
your shoulder. In a frontal crash, your body
would move too far forward. That would
increase the chance of head and neck
injuries. The seat belt would also apply too
much force to the ribs or abdomen, which
could severely injure internal organs such
as your liver or spleen.
Adjust the seat belt so that the shoulder
section is located as close as possible to
the middle of the shoulder. It should not
touch the neck. Never pass the shoulder
portion of the seat belt under your arm. For
this purpose, you can adjust the height of
the seat belt outlet.
Position the lap belt as low as possible on
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your hips and not across the abdomen. If
the lap belt is positioned across your
abdomen, it could cause serious injuries in
a crash.
Never wear seat belts over rigid or
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breakable objects in or on your clothing,
such as eyeglasses, pens, keys etc., as
these might cause injuries.
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