Seats and Safety System

This chapter contains important information on how to protect yourself and your passengers. It explains how to use the seats and seat belts properly, and how your airbags work. In addition, this chapter explains how to properly restrain infants and children in your vehicle.

Important Safety Precautions

You will find many precautions and recommendations on this subject in this section and throughout this manual. The precautions in this section are among the most important.

Always Wear Your Seat Belt

The seat belt is your best protection in all types of accidents. Airbags are designed to supplement seat belts, not replace them. Therefore, even though your vehicle is equipped with airbags, ALWAYS make sure that you and your passengers wear seat belts and fasten them properly.

Restrain All Children

All children under 13 years of age riding in your vehicle must be properly restrained in a rear seat, not the front seat. Infants and small children must be restrained in an appropriate child restraint system. Larger children should use a booster seat with a lap/shoulder belt until they can use the seat belt correctly without a booster seat.

Airbag Hazards

Although airbags can save lives, they can also cause serious or fatal injuries to passengers who sit too close to them or who are not properly restrained. Infants, small children and short adults are at the greatest risk of injury from airbag inflation. Follow all instructions and warnings in this manual.

Driver Distraction

Driver distraction is a serious and potentially fatal hazard, especially for inexperienced drivers. Safety must be the first concern when driving, and drivers must be aware of a wide range of potential distractions, such as drowsiness, reaching for objects, eating, grooming, other passengers, and cell phones.

Drivers can become distracted when they take their eyes and attention off the road or their hands off the steering wheel to focus on an activity other than driving. To reduce the risk of being distracted or being involved in an accident:

• ALWAYS set up your mobile devices (such as MP3 players, phones, navigation units, etc.) when your vehicle is parked or safely stopped.
• Use your mobile device ONLY when permitted by law and when conditions allow safe use. NEVER write or read text messages while driving. Most states have laws prohibiting drivers from sending text messages. Some states and cities also prohibit drivers from using handheld phones.
• NEVER allow the use of a mobile device to distract you from driving. You are responsible to your passengers and others on the road to always drive safely, with your hands on the steering wheel and your eyes and attention on the road.

Control Your Speed

Excessive speed is a major factor in accident injuries and deaths. In general, the higher the speed, the greater the risk, but serious injuries can also occur at lower speeds. Never drive faster than is safe for current conditions, regardless of the posted speed limit.

Keep Your Vehicle in Safe Condition

A tire blowout or mechanical failure can be extremely dangerous. To reduce the likelihood of such problems, check tire pressure and condition often, and perform all regularly scheduled maintenance.