Subaru 2006 Impreza WRX - Manual (Page 47)

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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
Front seatbelt pretensioners
The driver’s and front passenger’s seat-
belts have a seatbelt pretensioner. The
seatbelt pretensioners are designed to be
activated in the event of an accident in-
volving a moderate to severe frontal colli-
sion.
The pretensioner sensor also serves as
the frontal SRS airbag sensor. If the sen-
sor detects a certain predetermined
amount of force during a frontal 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
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 there-
fore must be replaced.
NOTE
Seatbelt pretensioners are not de-
signed to activate in minor frontal im-
pacts, in side or rear impacts or in roll-
over accidents.
The driver’s seat and passenger’s
seat pretensioners and frontal SRS air-
bag operate simultaneously.
Pretensioners are designed to func-
tion 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 seat-
belt retractor assemblies, use only
genuine SUBARU parts.
If either front seatbelt does not re-
tract or cannot be pulled out due to a
malfunction or activation of the preten-
sioner, contact your SUBARU dealer as
soon as possible.
If the front seatbelt retractor assem-
bly or surrounding area has been dam-
aged, contact your SUBARU dealer as
soon as possible.
When you sell your vehicle, we urge
you to explain to the buyer that it has
seatbelt pretensioners by alerting him
to the contents of this section.
100121
To obtain maximum protection,
the occupants should sit in an up-
right position with their seatbelts
properly fastened. Refer to the
“Seatbelts” section in this chap-
ter.
Do not modify, remove or strike
the front seatbelt retractor assem-
blies or surrounding area. This
could result in accidental activa-
tion of the seatbelt pretensioners
or could make the system inoper-
ative, possibly resulting in seri-
ous injury. Seatbelt pretensioners
have no user-serviceable parts.
For required servicing of front
seatbelt retractors equipped with
seatbelt pretensioners, see your
nearest SUBARU dealer.