Pretensioners - Alfa Romeo MiTo Owner's Manual

PRETENSIONERS

The vehicle is equipped with front seat belt pretensioners, which
draw back the seat belts by several centimetres in the event of a
strong frontal impact. This guarantees the perfect adherence of the
seat belts to the occupant's bodies before the retention action be-
gins.
The activation of the pretensioners can be detected from the re-
traction of the belt towards the reel.
The vehicle also features a second pretensioning device (fitted near
the kick plate): The activation of this device is indicated by the
shortening of the metal cable.
A small amount of smoke may be produced during the activation
of the pretensioners. This smoke is in no way toxic and does not
indicate an outbreak of fire.
IMPORTANT To obtain the highest degree of protection from the ac-
tion of the pretensioning device, wear the seat belt, keeping it close
to the chest and pelvis.
The pretensioner does not require any maintenance or greasing:
anything that modifies its original condition invalidates its efficiency.
If, due to unusual natural events (floods, sea storms, etc.), the de-
vice has been affected by water and mud, it must be replaced.
SAFETY
LOAD LIMITERS
To increase passenger's safety, the front seat belt reels contain a
load limiter which allows controlled sag in such a way as to dose
the force acting on the chest and shoulders during the belt restraining
action in case of front crash.
The pretensioner can only be used once.
Once it has activated contact an Alfa Romeo
Authorised Service Provider to have it replaced.
The expiry date of the device is shown on the label in the
glove compartment: Contact an Alfa Romeo Authorised
Service Provider when the time comes to replace the de-
vice.
Operations which lead to shocks, vibrations or lo-
calised heating (over 100 ° C for a maximum of 6
hours) in the area around the pretensioners may
damage or trigger them. These devices are not affected
by vibrations caused by irregularities of the road surface
or low obstacles such as kerbs, etc. Contact an Alfa Romeo
Authorised Service Provider for any assistance.
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