You will find many safety precautions and recommendations throughout this section, and throughout this manual. The safety precautions in this section are among the most important.
Always Wear Your Seat Belt
A seat belt is your best protection in all types of accidents. Air bags are designed to supplement seat belts, not replace them. So even though your vehicle is equipped with air bags, ALWAYS make sure you and your passengers wear your seat belts, and wear them properly.
Restrain All Children
All children under age 13 should ride in your vehicle properly restrained in a rear seat, not the front seat. Infants and small children should be restrained in an appropriate child restraint. Larger children should use a booster seat with the lap/shoulder belt until they can use the seat belt properly without a booster seat.
Air Bag Hazards
While air bags can save lives, they can also cause serious or fatal injuries to occupants who sit too close to them, or who are not properly restrained. Infants, young children, and shorter adults are at the greatest risk of being injured by an inflating air bag. Follow all instructions and warnings in this manual.
Driver Distraction
Driver distraction presents a serious and potentially deadly danger, especially for inexperienced drivers. Safety should be the first concern when behind the wheel and drivers need to be aware of the wide array of potential distractions, such as drowsiness, reaching for objects, eating, personal grooming, other passengers, and using cellular phones.
Drivers can become distracted when they take their eyes and attention off the road or their hands off the wheel to focus on activities other than driving. To reduce your risk of distraction or getting into an accident:
Control Your Speed
Excessive speed is a major factor in crash injuries and deaths. Generally, the higher the speed, the greater the risk, but serious injuries can also occur at lower speeds. Never drive faster than is safe for current conditions, regardless of the maximum speed posted.
Keep Your Vehicle in Safe Condition
Having a tire blowout or a mechanical failure can be extremely hazardous. To reduce the possibility of such problems, check your tire pressures and condition frequently, and perform all regularly scheduled maintenance.
Air bag warning labels, required by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), are attached to alert the driver and passengers of potential risks of the air bag system. Be sure to read all of the information about the air bags that are installed on your vehicle in this Owners Manual.