Child Restraint Precautions

Mazda strongly urges the use of child-restraint systems for children small enough to use
them.

You are required by law to use a child-restraint system for children in the U.S. and Canada.

Check your local and state or provincial laws for specific requirements regarding the safety
of children riding in your vehicle.

Whatever child-restraint system you consider, please pick the appropriate one for the age
and size of the child, obey the law and follow the instructions that come with the individual
child-restraint system.

A child who has outgrown child-restraint systems should sit in the rear and use seat belts,
both lap and shoulder. If the shoulder belt crosses the neck or face, move the child closer to
the center of the vehicle.

Statistics confirm that the rear seats are the best place for all children up to 12 years of age,
and more so with a supplemental restraint system (air bags).

A rear-facing child-restraint system should NEVER be used on the front seat with the air
bag system activated. The front passenger's seat is also the least preferred seat for other
child-restraint systems.

To reduce the chance of injuries caused by deployment of the front passenger air bag, the
front passenger seat weight sensors work as a part of the supplemental restraint system.

This system deactivates the front passenger front and side air bags and also the front
passenger seat belt pretensioner system when the total seated weight on the front passenger
seat is less than approximately 30 kg (66 lb).

When an infant or small child sits on the front passenger seat, the system shuts off the front
passenger front and side air bags and seat belt pretensioner system, so make sure the front
passenger air bag deactivation indicator light illuminates.

Even if the front passenger air bag is shut off, Mazda strongly recommends that children be
properly restrained and child-restraint systems of all kinds are properly secured on the rear
seats which are the best place for children.

For more details, refer to “Front passenger seat weight sensors”.

WARNING.

Use the correct size child-restraint system: For effective protection in vehicle accidents and sudden stops, a child must be properly restrained using a seat belt or child-restraint system depending on age and
size. If not, the child could be seriously injured or even killed in an accident.

Follow the manufacturer's instructions and always keep the child-restraint system
buckled down:
An unsecured child-restraint system is dangerous. In a sudden stop or a collision it
could move causing serious injury or death to the child or other occupants. Make sure any child-restraint system is properly secured in place according to the childrestraint
system manufacturer's instructions. When not in use, remove it from the vehicle or fasten it with a seat belt, or latch it down to BOTH LATCH lower anchors
for LATCH child-restraint systems and the corresponding tether anchor.

Always secure a child in a proper child-restraint system: Holding a child in your arms while the vehicle is moving is extremely dangerous. No
matter how strong the person may be, he or she cannot hold onto a child in a sudden stop or collision and it could result in serious injury or death to the child or
other occupants. Even in a moderate accident, the child may be exposed to air bag
forces that could result in serious injury or death to the child, or the child may be
slammed into an adult, causing injury to both child and adult.

Never use a rear-facing child-restraint system in the front seat with an air bag that
could deploy:
Rear-facing child-restraint systems on the front seat are particularly dangerous even
though you may feel assured that a front passenger air bag will not deploy based on
the fact that the front passenger air bag deactivation indicator light illuminates.

The child-restraint system can be hit by a deploying air bag and moved violently backward resulting in serious injury or death to the child.

Do not install a front-facing child-restraint system on the front


Do not install a front-facing child-restraint system on the front passenger seat unless
it is unavoidable:
In a collision, the force of a deploying air bag could cause serious injury or death to
the child. If installing a front-facing child-restraint system on the front passenger
seat is unavoidable, move the front passenger seat as far back as possible.

Seating a child in a child-restraint system on the front passenger seat is


Seating a child in a child-restraint system on the front passenger seat is dangerous:
Vehicles equipped with front passenger seat weight sensors are also equipped with a
front passenger air bag deactivation indicator light. Even with the front passenger seat weight sensors, if you must use the front passenger seat for children,
seating a child in a child-restraint system on the front passenger seat under the
following conditions increases the danger of the front passenger air bag deploying
and could result in serious injury or death to the child.

front The total seated weight of the child with the child-restraint system on the
front
passenger seat is approximately 30 kg (66 lb) or more with a child in the childrestraint
system.

child-restraint Luggage or other items are placed on the seat with the child in the
child-restraint
system.

A rear passenger puts their feet on the front seat rails. A rear passenger or luggage push or pull down on the front passenger seatback.


Luggage or other items are placed on the seatback or hung on the head A rear passenger puts their feet on the front seat rails.


restraint Luggage or other items are placed on the seatback or hung on the head
restraint
or armrest.

Liquids are spilled on the seat. The seat is washed.


The front passenger seat is moved backward, pushing into luggage or other Liquids are spilled on the seat.


items The front passenger seat is moved backward, pushing into luggage or other
items
placed behind it.

Luggage or other items are placed between the front passenger seat and driver The front passenger seatback contacts the second-row seat.


seat. Luggage or other items are placed between the front passenger seat and driver
seat.

passenger seat, are attached to the front passenger seat. Any accessories, which might increase the total seated weight on the front
passenger seat, are attached to the front passenger seat.

The designated positions with seat belts on the rear seats are the safest places for
children. Always use seat belts and child restraints.

Do not allow a child or anyone to lean over or against the side window of a vehicle
with side and curtain air bags: It is dangerous to allow anyone to lean over or against the side window, the area of
the front passenger seat, the front and rear window pillars and the roof edge along
both sides from which the side and curtain air bags deploy, even if a child-restraint
system is used. The impact of inflation from a side or curtain air bag could cause
serious injury or death to an out of position child. Furthermore, leaning over or
against the front door could block the side and curtain air bags and eliminate the
advantages of supplemental protection. With the front air bag and the additional side air bag that comes out of the front seat, the rear seat is always a better location
for children. Take special care not to allow a child to lean over or against the side
window, even if the child is seated in a child-restraint system.

Never use one seat belt on more than one person at a time: Using one seat belt for more than one person at a time is dangerous. A seat belt used in this way cannot spread the impact forces properly and the two passengers could be crushed together and seriously injured or even killed. Never use one belt for
more than one person at a time and always operate the vehicle with each occupant properly restrained.

CAUTION.

A seat belt or child-restraint system can become very hot in a closed vehicle during
warm weather. To avoid burning yourself or a child, check them before you or your
child touches them.

NOTE.

Your Mazda is equipped with LATCH lower anchors for attachment of specially designed LATCH
child-restraint systems in the rear seats. When using these anchors to secure a child-restraint system,
refer to “LATCH Child-Restraint Systems”.

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