Subaru 2006 Forester Owner's Manual page 50

tractor to take up the slack so that the belt
more effectively restrains the front seat
occupant.
When a seatbelt pretensioner is activated,
an operating noise will be heard and a
small amount of smoke will be released.
These occurrences are normal and not
harmful. This smoke does not indicate a
fire in the vehicle.
Once the seatbelt pretensioner has been
activated, the seatbelt retractor remains
locked. Consequently, the seatbelt can
not be pulled out and retracted and there-
fore must be replaced.
NOTE
Seatbelt pretensioners are not de-
signed to activate in minor frontal im-
pacts, in minor side impacts or in rear
impacts or in roll-over accidents.
The driver's seat and passenger's
seat pretensioners and frontal SRS air-
bag operate simultaneously.
The driver's and passenger's seat-
belt pretensioners and the SRS side
airbag operate simultaneously.
Pretensioners are designed to func-
tion on a one-time-only basis. In the
event that a pretensioner is activated,
both the driver's and front passenger's
seatbelt retractor assemblies must be
replaced only by an authorized
SUBARU dealer. When replacing seat-
belt retractor assemblies, use only
genuine SUBARU parts.
If either front seatbelt does not re-
tract or cannot be pulled out due to a
malfunction or activation of the preten-
sioner, contact your SUBARU dealer as
soon as possible.
If the front seatbelt retractor assem-
bly or surrounding area has been dam-
aged, contact your SUBARU dealer as
soon as possible.
When you sell your vehicle, we urge
you to explain to the buyer that it has
seatbelt pretensioners by alerting him
to the contents of this section.
To obtain maximum protection,
the occupants should sit in an up-
right position with their seatbelts
properly fastened. Refer to the
"Seatbelts" section in this chap-
ter.
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
Do not modify, remove or strike
the front seatbelt retractor assem-
blies or surrounding area. This
could result in accidental activa-
tion of the seatbelt pretensioners
or could make the system inoper-
ative, possibly resulting in seri-
ous injury. Seatbelt pretensioners
have no user-serviceable parts.
For required servicing of front
seatbelt retractors equipped with
seatbelt pretensioners, see your
nearest SUBARU dealer.
When discarding front seatbelt re-
tractor assemblies or scrapping
the entire vehicle due to collision
damage or for other reasons, con-
sult your SUBARU dealer.
– CONTINUED –
1-21