2003 Mercury Mountaineer Owner Guide 1st Printing (Spanish) - Page 398

Seating and Safety Restraints It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area, inside or outside of a vehicle. In a collision, people riding in these areas are more likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not allow people to ride in any area of your vehicle that is not equipped with seats and safety belts. Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and using a safety belt properly. In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is significantly more likely to die than a person wearing a safety belt. Each seating position in your vehicle has a specific safety belt assembly which is made up of one buckle and one tongue that are designed to be used as a pair. 1) Use the shoulder belt on the outside shoulder only. Never wear the shoulder belt under the arm. 2) Never swing the safety belt around your neck over the inside shoulder. 3) Never use a single belt for more than one person. Always transport children 12 years old and under in the back seat and always properly use appropriate child restraints. Safety belts and seats can become hot in a vehicle that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn a small child. Check seat covers and buckles before you place a child anywhere near them. Energy Management Feature • This vehicle has a safety belt system with an energy management feature at the front seating positions to help further reduce the risk of injury in the event of a head-on collision. • This safety belt system has a retractor assembly that is designed to extend the seat belt webbing in a controlled manner. This helps reduce the belt force acting on the user's chest. BELT AND RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MUST BE REPLACED if the safety belt assembly automatic locking retractor feature or any other safety belt function is not operating properly when checked according to the procedures in Workshop Manual. Failure to replace the Belt and Retractor assembly could increase the risk of injury in collisions. 111