driver or front passenger have fastened their
seat belts.
If the driver or front passenger unfasten their
seat belts during the journey, the seat belt warn-
ing is activated again.
Air bags
Introduction
The installation point of an air bag can be rec-
ognized by the AIR BAG symbol.
An air bag complements the correctly fastened
seat belt. It is no substitute for the seat belt. The
air bag provides additional protection in appli-
cable accident situations.
Not all air bags are deployed in an accident. The
different air bag systems function independ-
ently from one another (
Y
page 55).
However, no system available today can com-
pletely eliminate injuries and fatalities.
It is also not possible to rule out a risk of injury
caused by an air bag due to the high speed at
which the air bag must be deployed.
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
If you do not sit in the correct seat position,
the air bag cannot protect as intended and
could even cause additional injury when
deployed. This poses an increased risk of
injury or even fatal injury.
To avoid hazardous situations, always make
sure that all of the vehicle's occupants:
R
have fastened their seat belts correctly,
including pregnant women
R
are sitting correctly and maintain the great-
est possible distance to the air bags
R
follow the following instructions
Always make sure that there are no objects
between the air bag and the vehicle's occu-
pants.
R
Adjust the seats properly before beginning
your journey. Always make sure that the seat
is in an almost upright position. The center of
the head restraint must support the head at
about eye level.
R
Move the driver's and front-passenger seats
as far back as possible. The driver's seat posi-
tion must allow the vehicle to be driven safely.
R
Only hold the steering wheel on the outside.
This allows the air bag to be fully deployed.
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Always lean against the backrest while driv-
ing. Do not lean forwards or lean against the
door or side window. You may otherwise be in
the deployment area of the air bags.
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Always keep your feet in the footwell in front
of the seat. Do not put your feet on the dash-
board, for example. Your feet may otherwise
be in the deployment area of the air bag.
R
For this reason, always secure persons less
than 5 ft (1.50 m) tall in suitable restraint sys-
tems. Up to this height, the seat belt cannot
be worn correctly.
If a child is traveling in your vehicle, also
observe the following notes:
R
Always secure children under twelve years of
age and less than 5 ft (1.50 m) tall in suitable
child restraint systems.
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Child restraint systems should be installed on
the rear seats.
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Only secure a child in a rearward-facing child
restraint system on the front-passenger seat
when the front-passenger front air bag is
deactivated. If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
indicator lamp is permanently lit, the front-
passenger front air bag is deactivated
(
Y
page 43).
R
Always observe the instructions and safety
notes on the "Occupant Classification System
(OCS)" (
Y
page 51) and on "Children in the
vehicle" (
Y
page 59) in addition to the child
restraint system manufacturer's installation
and operating instructions.
Objects in the vehicle interior may prevent
an air bag from functioning correctly. Before
starting your journey and to avoid risks resulting
from the speed of the air bag as it deploys, make
sure that:
R
there are no people, animals or objects
between the vehicle occupants and an air
bag.
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there are no objects between the seat, door
and B-pillar.
R
no hard objects, e.g. coat hangers, hang on
the grab handles or coat hooks.
48
Occupant safety
Safety
