1996 Ford Thunderbird Owner's Manual - Page 22

There are four very important reasons to use safety belts even with an air bag system. Use your safety belts to: u help keep you in the proper position (away from the air bag) when it inflates u reduce the risk of harm in rollover, side or rear impact collisions, because an air bag is not designed to inflate in such situations that are not severe enough to activate the supplemental air bag vehicle u reduce the risk of harm in frontal collisions u reduce the risk of being thrown from your The Importance of Being Properly Seated In a collision, the air bag must inflate extremely fast to help provide additional protection for you. In order to do this, the air bag must inflate with considerable force. If you are not seated in a normal riding position with your back against the seatback, the air bag may not protect you properly and could possibly hurt you as it inflates. RWARNING If a passenger is not properly seated and restrained, an inflating air bag could cause serious injury. RWARNING Rear-facing infant seats should never be placed in the front seat. 19