Restraint System
Note: If the vehicle has been in a collision, refer to
Repairs and Inspections Required After a Collision for additional information.
Vehicle has front and rear seat belts that are the primary means of occupant restraint. Seat belts help to keep the occupants inside the passenger compartment and to gradually reduce the impact forces during the following events:
| • | Frontal impact type crashes |
| • | Rear impact type crashes |
| • | Side impact type crashes |
All seat belt retractors have emergency locks. The retractors remain unlocked during normal operation and under normal driving conditions. The retractors remain unlocked during normal conditions in order to allow free movement of the upper body of each
occupant. A pendulum locks the seat belt webbing into position. The pendulum causes a locking bar to engage a cog on the spool of the retractor mechanism when any of the following conditions occur:
| • | A rapid extraction of the seat belt webbing from the retractor |
| • | An abrupt change in vehicle speed |
| • | An abrupt change in vehicle direction |
| • | Operation of the vehicle on a steep upgrade |
| • | Operation of the vehicle on a downgrade |
The seat belts have an automatic locking (cinch) feature. The cinch feature is activated when the seat belt webbing is completely extended from the retractor. The cinch feature prevents the webbing from extending beyond the position from which it is allowed
to retract. Use of the cinch feature is recommended for securing a child seat. The cinch feature may be cancelled by allowing the webbing to wind back completely into the retractor. After the cinch feature is cancelled, the webbing is unlocked. After the cinch
feature is cancelled, the webbing will extend from the retractor. This vehicle is also equipped with a supplemental inflatable restraint (SIR) system. Refer to
SIR System Description and Operation.
Front Seat Belt System
The front seat belt system includes a driver and passenger seat belt pretensioner retractor. The passenger seat belt buckle includes a seat belt tension sensor. For more information on the pretensioner retractor and belt tension sensor refer to
SIR System Description and Operation. Both front seat belts includes a seat belt switch or sensor in the seat buckle which is monitored by the inflatable restraint sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) for control of a reminder lamp and a tone alarm.
The driver seat belt buckle contains a switch and the passenger seat belt buckle contains a sensor, both monitored by the SDM. Both the switch and sensor are monitored for seat belt indicator illumination however; a sensor fault will illuminate the SIR
indicator and set DTCs in the SDM and while a switch will do neither.
| | Note: The front passenger seat is equipped with a passenger presence system (PPS), which detects an occupant. If the PPS detects an empty front passenger seat, then the passenger fasten safety belt indicator will be disabled.
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| • | When the driver and passenger seat belts buckled, and the ignition switch is turned ON, the instrument cluster will illuminate the driver and passenger seat belt indicators for a bulb check for several seconds, then turn OFF. |
| • | When the driver seat belt is not buckled, and the ignition switch is in the ON position, the following events will occur: |
| - | The tone alarm will operate for 4-8 seconds and then go OFF. |
| - | The fasten safety belt indicator will turn ON solid for 20 seconds, then flash for 55 seconds before turning OFF. The tone alarm and indicator will immediately turn OFF when the driver seat belt is buckled. |
| • | When the passenger seat belt is not buckled with an occupant sitting in the passenger front seat, and the ignition switch is turned ON, the following events will occur after a delay of approximately 25 seconds: |
| - | The tone alarm will operate for 4-8 seconds and then go OFF. |
| - | The reminder lamp, which is located within the PPS status indicator for the passenger seat, will be turned ON solid for 20 seconds, then flash for 55 seconds before turning OFF. The tone alarm and indicator will immediately turn OFF
when the passenger seat belt is buckled. |
Rear Seat Belt System
The Rear Seat Belt System includes the following components:
| • | The rear seat belt retractor is located at the wheelhouse panel and attached to the floor panel by the rear seat shoulder belt retractor bracket. |
| • | The rear seat belt buckles and the center seat belt are attached to floor panel. |
Child Seat Restraint System
Caution: The low one-way clutch should be disassembled for inspection purposes only. If excessive wear or damage is found in any component of the low one-way clutch upon inspection, replace the low one-way
clutch as an assembly.
The child seat may only be used in a forward facing seating location. The child seat should be installed and secured according to the manufacturer's directions. If the child seat has a top strap, the seat will need to be anchored. Passengers should not
be allowed to sit at locations where the seat belts are being used to secure the child seat.
All vehicles are equipped with a dual-mode type retractor with emergency and automatic locking features. The automatic locking feature is for restraint of a child seat. The child seat can be secured by pulling the seat belt all the way out to lock it.
Then tighten the seat belt around the child seat.
If a child seat is to be used in the second seat position, a special dealer-installed anchor must be used in order to anchor the child seat top strap. This only applies to the seats designed with the top strap provision and for the vehicles sold in Canada.
In order to ensure the correct top strap angle, the child seat is only to be used at the seating position for which the top strap anchor is installed.
Fasten Safety Belt Indicators
There are 2 fasten safety belt indicators for this vehicle. The driver fasten safety belt reminder is located on the instrument panel cluster (IPC) and the passenger fasten safety belt reminder is located in the PASSENGER AIR BAG ON/OFF status indicator.
The fasten safety belt indicator is only illuminated with the ignition in the RUN position. The IPC illuminates the fasten safety belt indicator under the following condition:
After a bulb check the SDM controls both indicators by using a serial data communications message to request illumination. If either seat belt is unfastened, (passenger indicator will only illuminate after an approximate 25 second delay, and only
if an occupant is seated in the front passenger seat), the SDM will illuminate the appropriate fasten safety belt indicator for 20 seconds of solid illumination and then 55 seconds of flashing illumination before turning OFF or immediately turn
OFF when the seat belt is fastened. If the driver seat belt is unfastened within 8 seconds following a key transition to RUN the SDM sends a message requesting 5 chimes to sound. When the enhanced reminder function is enabled the illumination and
chime sequence will repeat after approximately 30 seconds and then again after 3 minutes if the seat belt remains unfastened and vehicle speed is greater than 5 MPH.
