2004 Mercury Sable Owner Guide 3rd Printing - Page 96

Seating and Safety Restraints 2. To unfasten, push the release button and remove the tongue from the buckle. Energy management retractors Your vehicle has a seat belt system equipped with energy management retractors at the driver and front outboard passenger seating positions. An energy management retractor is a device which pays out webbing in a controlled manner. This feature is designed to help further reduce the risk of force-related injuries to the occupant. Seat belt systems equipped with an energy management retractor must be replaced if they were in use during a frontal collision which resulted in deployment of the frontal air bags. Refer to the Safety belt maintenance section in this chapter. Vehicle sensitive mode This is the normal retractor mode, which allows free shoulder belt length adjustment to your movements and locking in response to vehicle movement. For example, if the driver brakes suddenly or turns a corner sharply, or the vehicle receives an impact of approximately 8 km/h (5 mph) or more, the combination safety belts will lock to help reduce forward movement of the driver and passengers. Automatic locking mode In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-locked. The belt will still retract to remove any slack in the shoulder belt. The automatic locking mode is not available on the driver safety belt. This mode should be used any time a child safety seat is installed in the vehicle. Children 12 years old and under should be properly restrained in the rear seat whenever possible. Refer to Safety restraints for children or Safety seats for children later in this chapter. 96 2004 Sable (sab) Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt) USA English (fus)