Get EssentialSafetyEquipment -> 1-2. Seat Belt Systems Guide for Toyota Yaris 4 Door Fourth Generation (2021-2026)

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

Seat Belt Precautions

Seat belts help to decrease the possibility of severe injury

during accidents and sudden stops. Toyota recommends that

the driver and all passengers always wear seat belts.

1

All of the seat belt retractors are designed to keep the lap/shoulder

belts out of the way when not in use.

The driver’s seat belt has no provisions for child-restraint systems and

has only an emergency locking mode. The driver may wear it comfort-

ably, and it will lock during a collision.

However, the front passenger’s seat and all rear lap/shoulder belt

retractors operate in two modes: emergency locking mode, and for

child-restraint systems, automatic locking mode. While we recom-

mend you put all children in the rear seats, if you must use the front

passenger seat for a child, slide the front passenger seat as far back

as possible and make sure any child-restraint system is secured prop-

erly.

WARNING

■Always wear your seat belt and make sure all occupants are properly

restrained

Not wearing a seat belt is extremely dangerous. During a collision, occu-

pants not wearing seat belts could hit someone or things inside the vehicle

or even be thrown out of the vehicle. They could be seriously injured or

even killed. In the same collision, occupants wearing seat belts would be

much safer.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

WARNING

■Do not wear twisted seat belts

Twisted seat belts are dangerous. In a collision, the full width of the belt is

not available to absorb the impact. This puts more force on the bones

beneath the belt, which could cause serious injury or death. So, if your seat

belt is twisted, you must straighten the seat belt to remove any twists and to

allow the full width of the belt to be used.

■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.

■Do not operate a vehicle with a damaged seat belt

Using a damaged seat belt is dangerous. An accident could damage the

belt webbing of the seat belt in use. A damaged seat belt cannot provide

adequate protection in a collision. Have your Toyota dealer inspect all seat

belt systems in use during an accident before they are used again.

■Have your seat belts changed immediately if the pretensioner or load

limiter has been expended

Always have your Toyota dealer immediately inspect the seat belt preten-

sioners and air bags after any collision. Like the air bags, the seat belt pre-

tensioners and load limiters will only function once and must be replaced

after any collision that caused them to deploy. A seat belt with an expended

pretensioner or load limiter is still better than wearing no seat belt at all;

however, if the seat belt pretensioners and load limiters are not replaced,

the risk of injury in a collision will increase.

■Positioning the Shoulder Portion of the Seat Belt

Improper positioning of the shoulder portion of the seat belt is dangerous.

Always make sure the shoulder portion of the seat belt is positioned across

your shoulder and near your neck, but never under your arm, on your neck,

or on your upper arm.

■Positioning the Lap Portion of the Seat Belt

The lap portion of the seat belt worn too high is dangerous. In a collision,

this would concentrate the impact force directly on the abdominal area,

causing serious injury. Wear the lap portion of the belt snugly and as low as

possible.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

NOTICE

Belt retraction may become difficult if the

belts and rings are soiled, so try to keep

them clean. For more details about

cleaning the seat belts, refer to “Cleaning

the Lap/Shoulder Belt Webbing”

(P. 453).

Ring

1

Pregnant Women and Persons with Serious Medical Conditions

Pregnant women should always wear seat belts. Ask your doctor for

specific recommendations.

The lap belt should be worn

SNUGLY AND AS LOW AS POS-

SIBLE OVER THE HIPS. The

shoulder belt should be worn

across your shoulder properly, but

never across the stomach area.

Persons with serious medical conditions also should wear seat belts.

Check with your doctor for any special instructions regarding specific

medical conditions.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

Emergency Locking Mode

When the seat belt is fastened, it will always be in the emergency

locking mode.

In the emergency locking mode, the belt remains comfortable on the

occupant and the retractor will lock in position during a collision.

If the belt is locked and cannot be pulled out, retract the belt once, and

then try pulling it out slowly. If this fails, pull the belt strongly one time

and loosen, then pull it out again slowly.

Seat Belt with Automatic Locking Mode:

When the seat belt is fastened, it will always be in the emergency

locking mode until it is switched to automatic locking mode by pulling

it all the way out to its full length. If the belt feels tight and hinders

comfortable movement while the vehicle is stopped or in motion, it

may be in the automatic locking mode because the belt has been

pulled too far out. To return the belt to the more comfortable emer-

gency locking mode, wait until the vehicle has stopped in a safe, level

area, retract the belt fully to convert it back to emergency locking

mode and then extend it around you again.

Automatic Locking Mode (if equipped)

Always use the automatic locking mode to keep the child-restraint

system from shifting to an unsafe position in the event of an accident.

To enable seat belt automatic locking mode, pull it all the way out and

connect it as instructed on the child-restraint system. It will retract

down to the child-restraint system and stay locked on it. See the sec-

tion on child restraint (P. 44).

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

Seat Belt

Fastening the Seat Belt

Position the lap belt as low as

possible, not on the abdominal

area, then adjust the shoulder belt

so that it fits snugly against your

body.

Seat belt

tongue

1

Seat belt

buckle

Keep low on

hip bone

Take up slack

Too high

 4-Door

Before fastening the rear seat

belt, make sure that the seat belt

passes through the seat belt

guide correctly and it is not

twisted.

Seat belt guide

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

Unfastening the Seat Belt

Depress the button on the seat

belt buckle. If the belt does not

fully retract, pull it out and check

for kinks or twists. Then make

sure it remains untwisted as it

retracts.

Button

If a belt does not fully retract, inspect it for kinks and twists. If it is still not

retracting properly, have it inspected at your Toyota dealer.

Front Shoulder Belt Adjuster

1

2

To raise

To lower

Make sure the adjuster is locked.

Seat Belt Warning Systems

If it detects that the occupant seat belt is unfastened, the warning light

or beep alerts the occupant.

Refer to Taking Action on P. 496.

Refer to Seat Belt Warning Beep on P. 503.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

Seat Belt Pretensioner and Load Limiting

Systems

For optimum protection, the driver and front passenger seat

belts are equipped with pretensioner and load limiting systems.

For both these systems to work properly you must wear the seat

belt properly.

1

◆ Pretensioners

When a collision is detected, the pretensioners deploy simultane-

ously with the air bags.

The pretensioners deploy simultaneously with the air bags when a

roll-over is also detected.

For deployment details, refer to the SRS Air Bag Deployment Crite-

ria (P. 78).

The front seat belt retractors remove slack quickly as the air bags

are expanding. Any time the air bags and seat belt pretensioners

have fired they must be replaced.

A system malfunction or operation conditions are indicated by a

warning.

Refer to Warning/Indicator Lights on P. 173.

Refer to Air Bag/Front Seat Belt Pretensioner System Warning

Beep on P. 503.

In addition, the pretensioner system for the front passenger, like the

front and side passenger air bag, is designed to only deploy when

the front passenger occupant classification sensor detects a pas-

senger sitting on the front passenger’s seat.

For details, refer to the front passenger occupant classification sen-

sor (P. 82).

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◆ Load limiter

1-2. Seat Belt Systems

The load limiting system releases belt webbing in a controlled man-

ner to reduce belt force on the occupant’s chest. While the most

severe load on a seat belt occurs in frontal collisions, the load lim-

iter has an automatic mechanical function and can activate in any

accident mode with sufficient occupant movement.

Even if the pretensioners have not fired, the load limiting function

must be checked by your Toyota dealer.

●The pretensioner system may not operate depending on the type of the col-

lision. For details, refer to the SRS Air Bag Deployment Criteria (P. 78)

●Some smoke (non-toxic gas) will be released when the air bags and preten-

sioners deploy. This does not indicate a fire. This gas normally has no effect

on occupants, however, those with sensitive skin may experience light skin

irritation. If residue from the deployment of the air bags or the front preten-

sioner system gets on the skin or in the eyes, wash it off as soon as possi-

ble.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

WARNING

■Wear seat belts only as recommended in this owner’s manual

Incorrect positioning of the driver and front passenger seat belts is danger-

ous. Without proper positioning, the pretensioner and load limiting systems

cannot provide adequate protection in an accident and this could result in

serious injury. For more details about wearing seat belts, refer to “Fastening

the seat belts” (P. 37).

1

■Have your seat belts changed immediately if the pretensioner or load

limiter has been expended

Always have your Toyota dealer immediately inspect the seat belt preten-

sioners and air bags after any collision. Like the air bags, the seat belt pre-

tensioners and load limiters will only function once and must be replaced

after any collision that caused them to deploy. A seat belt with an expended

pretensioner or load limiter is still better than wearing no seat belt at all;

however, if the seat belt pretensioners and load limiters are not replaced,

the risk of injury in a collision will increase.

■Do not modify the components or wiring, or use electronic testing

devices on the pretensioner system

Modifying the components or wiring of the pretensioner system, including

the use of electronic testing devices is dangerous. You could accidentally

activate it or make it inoperable which would prevent it from activating in an

accident. The occupants or repairers could be seriously injured.

■Properly dispose of the pretensioner system

Improper disposal of the pretensioner system or a vehicle with non-deacti-

vated pretensioners is dangerous. Unless all safety procedures are fol-

lowed, injury could result. Have your Toyota dealer safely dispose of the

pretensioner system or scrap a pretensioner system equipped vehicle.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

Seat Belt Extender

If your seat belt is not long enough, even when fully extended, a

seat belt extender may be available to you at no charge from

your Toyota dealer.

This extender will be only for you and for the particular vehicle and

seat. Even if it plugs into other seat belts, it may not hold in the critical

moment of a crash.

When ordering an extender, only order one that provides the neces-

sary additional length to fasten the seat belt properly.

Please contact your Toyota dealer for more information.

When not in use, remove the seat belt extender and store it in the vehicle. If

the seat belt extender is left connected, the seat belt extender might get dam-

aged as it will not retract with the rest of the seat belt and can easily fall out of

the door when not in use and be damaged. In addition, the seat belt warning

light will not illuminate and function properly.

WARNING

■Do not use a seat belt extender unless it is necessary

Using a seat belt extender when not necessary is dangerous. The seat belt

will be too long and not fit properly. In an accident, the seat belt will not pro-

vide adequate protection and you could be seriously injured. Only use the

extender when it is required to fasten the seat belt properly.

■Do not use an improper extender

Using a seat belt extender that is for another person or a different vehicle or

seat is dangerous. The seat belt will not provide adequate protection and

the user could be seriously injured in an accident. Only use the extender

provided for you and for the particular vehicle and seat. NEVER use the

extender in a different vehicle or seat. If you sell your Toyota, do not leave

your seat belt extender in the vehicle. It could be used accidentally by the

new owner of the vehicle. After removing the seat belt extender, discard it.

Never use the seat belt extender in any other vehicle you may own in the

future.

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1-2. Seat Belt Systems

WARNING

■Do not use an extender that is too long

Using an extender that is too long is dangerous. The seat belt will not fit

properly. In an accident, the seat belt will not provide adequate protection

and you could be seriously injured. Do not use the extender or choose one

shorter in length if the distance between the extender’s buckle and the cen-

ter of the user’s body is less than 6 in. (150 mm).

1

■Do not leave a seat belt extender connected to the buckle

Leaving a seat belt extender connected to the buckle without using the seat

belt is dangerous. When the seat belt extender is connected to the driver’s

seat belt buckle (or front passenger’s seat belt buckle), the SRS driver’s (or

front passenger’s) air bag system will determine that the driver (or front pas-

senger) is wearing the seat belt even if the driver (or front passenger) is not

wearing it. This condition could cause the driver’s (or front passenger’s) air

bag to not activate correctly and result in death or serious injury in the event

of collision. Always wear the seat belt with the seat belt extender.

■Do not use the seat belt extender when installing a child-restraint sys-

tem on the front or rear passenger seat

Using a seat belt extender to fasten a child-restraint system on any seat is

dangerous. Always follow the child-restraint system manufacturer’s installa-

tion instructions and never use a seat belt extender.

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EssentialSafetyEquipment -> 1-2. Seat Belt Systems for Your Toyota Yaris 4 Door Fourth Generation (2021-2026)

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