2003 Honda Accord Owner's Manual - Page 11

Your Car's Safety Features Airbags do not replace seat belts. They are designed to supplement the seat belts. Airbags offer no protection in rear impacts, rollovers, or minor frontal or side collisions. Airbags can pose serious hazards. Seats and Seat-Backs Your car's seats are designed to keep you in a comfortable, upright position so you can take full advantage of the protection offered by seat belts and the energy absorbing materials in the seats. How you adjust your seats and seatbacks can also affect your safety. For example, sitting too close to the steering wheel or dashboard increases the risk of you or your passenger being injured by striking the inside of the car, or by an inflating airbag. Reclining a seat-back too far reduces the seat belt's effectiveness and increases the chance that the seat's occupant will slide under the seat belt in a crash and be seriously injured. U.S. EX-V6 model, optional on Canadian EX-V6 model Your car also has side curtain airbags. During a moderate to severe side impact, side curtain airbags help to protect the heads of the driver, front seat passenger, and passengers sitting in the outer rear seating positions. The most important things you need to know about your airbags are: To do their job, airbags must inflate with tremendous force and speed. So while airbags help save lives, they can cause minor injuries, or more serious or even fatal injuries if occupants are not properly restrained or sitting properly. What you should do: Always wear your seat belt properly, and sit upright and as far back as possible from the steering wheel or dashboard. 10 Driver and Passenger Safety