FORD 2005 Five Hundred v.1 - Manual (Page 113)

that the person isn’t sitting properly in the seat. If this happens, turn the
vehicle off and ask the person to place the seatback in the full upright
position, sit upright in the seat, centered on the seat cushion, with the
person’s legs comfortably extended. Restart the vehicle and have the
person remain in this position for about two minutes. This will allow the
system to detect that person and enable the passenger’s airbag. If the
indicator lamp remains lit even after this, the occupant should be advised
to ride in the rear seat.
After all occupants have adjusted their seats and put on safety belts, it’s
very important that they continue to sit upright with their back against
the seatback, with their feet comfortably extended on the floor while the
vehicle is still in motion. Sitting improperly can increase the chance of
injury in a crash event. For example, if an occupant slouches, lies down,
turns sideways, sits forward, leans forward or sideways, or puts one or
both feet up, the chance of injury during a crash is greatly increased.
Sitting improperly out of position or with the seat back reclined
too far can take off weight from the seat cushion and affect the
decision of the passenger sensing system, resulting in serious injury or
death in a crash. Always sit upright against your seatback, with your
feet on the floor.
The front passenger sensing system may detect small or medium objects
placed on the seat cushion. For most objects that are in the front
passenger seat, the passenger airbag will be disabled. Even though the
passenger airbag is disabled, the
Љpass airbag offЉ light may or may not
be illuminated according to the table below.
Objects
Pass Airbag Off
Indicator Light Passenger
Airbag
Empty seat Unlit Disabled
Small (i.e. 3 ring binder, small
purse, bottled water) Unlit Disabled
Medium (i.e. heavy briefcase,
fully packed luggage) Lit Disabled
Empty seat, Small or medium
object with safety belt buckled Lit Disabled
REVIEW COPY
2005 Ford Five Hundred (500), Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt) (own2002),
Market: USA_English (fus)
Seating and Safety Restraints
113