Ford Escape Hybrid (2012 year). Manual — part 33

WARNING: Safety belts and seats can become hot in a vehicle
that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn a

small child. Check seat covers and buckles before you place a child
anywhere near them.

WARNING: Front and rear seat occupants, including pregnant
women, should wear safety belts for optimum protection in an

accident.

Combination lap and shoulder belts

1. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle (the buckle closest to
the direction the tongue is coming
from) until you hear a snap and feel
it latch. Make sure the tongue is
securely fastened in the buckle.

2. To unfasten, press the release
button and remove the tongue from
the buckle.

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Restraint of pregnant women

WARNING: Always ride and drive with your seatback upright
and the safety belt properly fastened. The lap portion of the

safety belt should fit snug and be positioned low across the hips. The
shoulder portion of the safety belt should be positioned across the
chest. Pregnant women should also follow this practice. See figure
below.

Pregnant women should always
wear their safety belt. The lap belt
portion of a combination lap and
shoulder belt should be positioned
low across the hips below the belly
and worn as tight as comfort will
allow. The shoulder belt should be
positioned to cross the middle of
the shoulder and the center of the
chest.

Energy Management Feature
• This vehicle has a safety belt system with an energy management

feature at the front and rear outboard seating positions to help further
reduce the risk of injury in the event of a head-on collision.

• The front and rear outboard safety belt system has a retractor

assembly that is designed to extend the safety belt webbing in a
controlled manner. This helps reduce the belt force acting on the
user’s chest.

Safety belt locking modes

All safety restraints in the vehicle are combination lap and shoulder
belts. The driver safety belt has the first locking mode and the front
outboard passenger and rear seat safety belts have both types of locking
modes described as follows:

Vehicle sensitive mode

This is the normal retractor mode, which allows free shoulder belt length
adjustment to your movements and locking in response to vehicle
movement. For example, if the driver brakes suddenly or turns a corner
sharply, or the vehicle receives an impact of approximately 5 mph
(8 km/h) or more, the combination safety belts will lock to help reduce
forward movement of the driver and passengers.

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In addition, the retractor is designed to lock if the webbing is pulled out
too quickly. If this occurs, let the belt retract slightly and pull webbing
out again in a slow and controlled manner.

Automatic locking mode

In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-locked. The belt will
still retract to remove any slack in the shoulder belt. The automatic
locking mode is not available on the driver safety belt.

When to use the automatic locking mode

This mode should be used any time a child safety seat, except a
booster, is installed in passenger front or rear seating positions. Children
12 years old and under should be properly restrained in a rear seating
position whenever possible. Refer to Safety restraints for children or
Safety seats for children later in this chapter.

How to use the automatic locking mode

1. Buckle the combination lap and
shoulder belt.

2. Grasp the shoulder portion and
pull downward until the entire belt
is pulled out.

• Allow the belt to retract. As the belt retracts, you will hear a clicking

sound. This indicates the safety belt is now in the automatic locking
mode.

How to disengage the automatic locking mode

Disconnect the combination lap/shoulder belt and allow it to retract
completely to disengage the automatic locking mode and activate the
vehicle sensitive (emergency) locking mode.

WARNING: After any vehicle collision, the safety belt system at
all passenger seating positions must be checked by an authorized

dealer to verify that the “automatic locking retractor” feature for child
seats is still functioning properly. In addition, all safety belts should be
checked for proper function.

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WARNING: BELT AND RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MUST BE
REPLACED if the safety belt assembly “automatic locking

retractor” feature or any other safety belt function is not operating
properly when checked by an authorized dealer. Failure to replace the
belt and retractor assembly could increase the risk of injury in collisions.

Safety belt height adjustment

Your vehicle has safety belt height
adjustments at the front outboard
seating positions. Adjust the height
of the shoulder belt so the belt rests
across the middle of your shoulder.

To adjust the shoulder belt height,
squeeze and hold the buttons on the
side and slide the height adjuster up
or down. Release the buttons and
pull down on the height adjuster to
make sure it is locked in place.

WARNING: Position the safety belt height adjusters so that the
belt rests across the middle of your shoulder. Failure to adjust

the safety belt properly could reduce the effectiveness of the safety
belt and increase the risk of injury in a collision.

Safety belt pretensioner

Your vehicle is equipped with safety belt pretensioners at the driver and
front passenger seating positions.

The safety belt pretensioners activate during frontal collisions, and in
side collisions and rollovers. A safety belt pretensioner is a device which
tightens the webbing of the lap and shoulder belts in such a way that
they fit more snugly against the body.

WARNING: The driver and front passenger safety belt system
(including retractors, buckles and height adjusters) must be

replaced if the vehicle is involved in a collision that results in
deployment of front airbags, seat-mounted side airbags and Safety
Canopy

威 System and safety belt pretensioners.

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