2010 Subaru Forester Owner's Manual - Page 42

1-20 Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags . Have the seatbelt fully rolled up so that the tongue plates are neatly stored. A hanging tongue plate can swing and hit against the trim during driving, causing damage to the trim. Front seatbelt pretensioners seat occupant. When a seatbelt pretensioner is activated, an operating noise will be heard and a small amount of smoke will be released. These occurrences are normal and not harmful. This smoke does not indicate a fire in the vehicle. Once the seatbelt pretensioner has been activated, the seatbelt retractor remains locked. Consequently, the seatbelt can not be pulled out and retracted and therefore must be replaced. & Seatbelt maintenance To clean the seatbelts, use a mild soap and lukewarm water. Never bleach or dye the belts because this could seriously affect their strength. Inspect the seatbelts and attachments including the webbing and all hardware periodically for cracks, cuts, gashes, tears, damage, loose bolts or worn areas. Replace the seatbelts even if only minor damage is found. NOTE The driver's and front passenger's seatbelts have a seatbelt pretensioner. The seatbelt pretensioners for the driver's seat and front passenger's seat operate at the same time as the frontal, and side SRS airbags. If the vehicle rolls over, they operate simultaneously with the curtain airbag. The front and side airbag sensors and the rollover sensor are used as the pretensioner sensors. If a sensor detects a certain predetermined amount of force during a frontal collision, a side impact collision or a rollover collision, the front seatbelt is quickly drawn back in by the retractor to take up the slack so that the belt more effectively restrains the front . Seatbelt pretensioners are not designed to activate in minor frontal or side impacts or in rear impacts. . The driver's seat and passenger's seat pretensioners and frontal, side or curtain SRS airbags operate simultaneously. . Pretensioners are designed to function on a one-time-only basis. In the event that a pretensioner is activated, both the driver's and front passenger's seatbelt retractor assemblies must be replaced only by an authorized SUBARU dealer. When replacing seatbelt retractor assemblies, use only genuine SUBARU parts. CAUTION . Keep the belts free of polishes, oils, chemicals and particularly battery acid. . Never attempt to make modifications or changes that will prevent the seatbelt from operating properly.