Operation Manual

Depending on the person in the front-
passenger seat, the front-passenger front air
bag must either be deactivated or enabled;
see the following points. You must make sure
of this both before and during a journey.
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Children in a child restraint system:
whether the front-passenger front air bag is
enabled or deactivated depends on the
installed child restraint system, and the age
and size of the child. Therefore, be sure to
observe the notes on the "Occupant Clas-
sification System (OCS)" (
Y page 59) and
on "Children in the vehicle" (
Y page 68).
There you will also find instructions on rear-
ward and forward-facing child restraint sys-
tems on the front-passenger seat.
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All other persons: depending on the clas-
sification of the person in the front-
passenger seat, the front-passenger front
air bag is enabled or deactivated
(
Y page 59). Be sure to observe the notes
on "Seat belts“ (
Y page 52) and "Air bags"
(
Y page 56). There you can also find infor-
mation on the correct seat position.
Seat belts
Introduction
Seat belts are the most effective means of
restricting the movement of vehicle occu-
pants in the event of an accident or the vehi-
cle rolling over. This reduces the risk of vehi-
cle occupants coming into contact with parts
of the vehicle interior or being ejected from
the vehicle. Furthermore, the seat belt helps
to keep the vehicle occupant in the best posi-
tion in relation to the air bag.
The seat belt system comprises:
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Seat belts
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Emergency Tensioning Devices and seat
belt force limiters
If the seat belt is pulled by the seat belt guide
quickly or with a jerky movement, the belt
retractor locks. The belt strap cannot be
extracted any further.
The Emergency Tensioning Device tightens
the seat belt in an accident, pulling the belt
close against the body. However it does not
pull the vehicle occupant back in the direction
of the backrest.
The Emergency Tensioning Device does not
correct an incorrect seat position or the rout-
ing of an incorrectly fastened seat belt.
When triggered, a seat belt force limiter helps
to reduce the force exerted by the seat belt on
the vehicle occupant.
The seat belt force limiters are synchronized
with the front air bag
s which absorb part of
the deceleration force. This can reduce the
force exerted on the vehicle occupants during
an accident.
!
If the front-passenger seat is not occu-
pied, do not engage the seat belt tongue in
the buckle on the front-passenger seat.
Otherwise, in the event of an accident, the
Emergency Tensioning Device and front-
passenger front air bag may be triggered
and would need to be replaced.
Important safety notes
The use of seat belts and child restraint sys-
tems is required by law in:
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all 50 states
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the U.S. territories
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the District of Columbia
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all Canadian provinces
Even where this is not required by law, all
vehicle occupants should correctly fasten
their seat belts before starting the journey.
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WARNING
If the seat belt is incorrectly fastened, it can-
not protect as intended. Furthermore, an
incorrectly fastened seat belt can cause addi-
tional injury, for example, in an accident, dur-
ing braking or when abruptly changing direc-
tion. This poses an increased risk of injury or
even fatal injury.
52
Occupant safety
Safety