Mercedes-Benz 2009 R-Class, Operator'S Manual

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Occupant safety
58
your seat belt buckled, you are much more
likely to hit the interior of the vehicle or be
ejected from it. You can be seriously injured
or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of injury
or death is lessened if you are properly
wearing your seat belt. The air bags can
only protect as intended if the occupants
are properly wearing their seat belts.
G
Warning!
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
backrest in an excessively reclined position
as this can be dangerous. You could slide
under 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 Mercedes-Benz.
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
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Proper use of seat belts
G
Warning!
USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY
R
Seat belts can only work when used
properly. Never wear seat belts in any
other way than as described in this
section, as that could result in serious
injuries in case of an accident.
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Each occupant should wear their seat
belt 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 front air bag, front
passenger front air bag, side impact air
bags, window curtain air bags for side
windows), Emergency Tensioning
Devices (ETDs), 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).
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Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your
shoulder. In a frontal crash, your body
would move too far forward. That would
increase the chance of head and neck
Safety and security