2006 Subaru Legacy Owner's Manual - Page 8

5 Child safety Put children aged 12 and under in the REAR seat properly restrained at all times in a child restraint device or in a seatbelt. The SRS airbag deploys with considerable speed and force and can injure or even kill children, especially if they are 12 years of age and under and are not restrained or improperly restrained. Because children are lighter and weaker than adults, their risk of being injured from deployment is greater. NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD SAFETY SEAT IN THE FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO THE CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD'S HEAD TOO CLOSE TO THE SRS AIRBAG. Always use the child safety locks whenever a child rides in the rear seat. Serious injury could result if a child accidentally opened the door and fell out. Refer to the "Door locks" section in chapter 2. Always lock the passenger's windows using the lock switch when children are riding in the vehicle. Failure to follow this procedure could result in injury to a child operating the power window. Refer to the "Power windows" section in chapter 2. Never leave unattended children in the vehicle. They could accidentally injure themselves or others through inadvertent operation of the vehicle. Also, on hot or sunny days, temperature in a closed vehicle could quickly become high enough to cause severe or possibly fatal injuries to them. Help prevent young children from locking themselves in the trunk. When leaving the vehicle, either close all windows and lock all doors or cancel the inside trunk lid release. Also make certain that the trunk is closed. On hot or sunny days, the temperature in a trunk could quickly become high enough to cause death or serious heat-related injuries including brain damage to anyone locked inside, particularly for small children. - CONTINUED - Never hold a child on your lap or in your arms while the vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the child from injury in a collision, because the child will be caught between the passenger and objects inside the vehicle. While riding in the vehicle, infants and small children should always be placed in the REAR seat in an infant or child restraint system which is appropriate for the child's age, height and weight. If a child is too big for a child restraint system, the child should sit in the REAR seat and be restrained using the seatbelts. According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating positions. Never allow a child to stand up or kneel on the seat.