Front Passenger Seat Belt Pretensioner

[Cis4]

Front Passenger Seat Belt Emergency Locking Mode

My front passenger seat belt does a horrible job at catching people when stopping/slowing down suddenly. It's funny when my husbands in the passenger seat and nearly hits the windshield, not so funny when it's me. Does anyone else have this problem?
I am going to ask the service department about it the next time I take my car in for service, but just curious if anyone else has the same issue. Not really a big deal for me because I usually drive solo anyway.

Also, because I usually drive solo, I'm wondering if the rear passenger seat belt warning lights above the climate control panel actually illuminate when you have a rear passenger who's seat belts isn't buckled? I would test this myself, but I'm sure I'll forget the next time I have a passenger.

 

[yrwei52]

My front passenger seat belt does a horrible job at catching people when stopping/slowing down suddenly. It's funny when my husbands in the passenger seat and nearly hits the windshield, not so funny when it's me. Does anyone else have this problem?
I am going to ask the service department about it the next time I take my car in for service, but just curious if anyone else has the same issue. Not really a big deal for me because I usually drive solo anyway.

Also, because I usually drive solo, I'm wondering if the rear passenger seat belt warning lights above the climate control panel actually illuminate when you have a rear passenger who's seat belts isn't buckled? I would test this myself, but I'm sure I'll forget the next time I have a passenger.

Front seat belt pretensioner will only be activated/deployed simultaneously with front air bag. This means the car is having a moderate or severe frontal or near frontal impact. You don't want this happening to you which also requires expensive replacement for both systems once they were deployed.

All seat belts have "Emergency Locking Mode" and "Automatic Locking Mode". In order not to get confused, make sure NOT to pull the set belt too far out while you fasten your seat belt. Use "Automatic Locking Mode" only when you fasten a child seat by pulling the seat belt all the way out first. You can try to pull the seat belt in a sudden motion and see if the belt will be locked immediately. If it doesn't, then the seat belt may have some problems.

No, passenger seat belt warning lights, "PASS" with a air-bag icon above the climate control panel, is for FRONT passenger only. It has nothing to do with rear passengers. Personally I found this amber light is a little distractive, like those outside-air and recirculation indicating LED lights. I believe if everything is in proper and safe order, you shouldn't see any bright warning/indicating lights to distract you.

 

[ALafya]

^^^ What he said.
Plus to get the seatbelt to lock in normal driving is pretty hard. You really need to make an emergency stop to get it to trigger. Slowing down should not do it.

 

[Cis4]

Front seat belt pretensioner will only be activated/deployed simultaneously with front air bag. This means the car is having a moderate or severe frontal or near frontal impact. You don't want this happening to you which also requires expensive replacement for both systems once they were deployed.

All seat belts have "Emergency Locking Mode" and "Automatic Locking Mode". In order not to get confused, make sure NOT to pull the set belt too far out while you fasten your seat belt. Use "Automatic Locking Mode" only when you fasten a child seat by pulling the seat belt all the way out first. You can try to pull the seat belt in a sudden motion and see if the belt will be locked immediately. If it doesn't, then the seat belt may have some problems.

Every car I've had has had "emergency locking mode" engage when any passenger is pulled forward suddenly, regardless of the braking situation. I have tested it on purpose with my husband in the car, and him with me in the car, and both of us are flung forward more than we should be while in the passenger seat. It's the same thing as when you're in a hurry to put on your seat belt, you pull to hard, and it stops in place. My issue is that if I brake suddenly, the drivers seat belt emergency locking mode will engage a lot sooner than the front passenger seat.

^^^ What he said.
Plus to get the seatbelt to lock in normal driving is pretty hard. You really need to make an emergency stop to get it to trigger. Slowing down should not do it.

We live in the Bay Area, emergency breaking is a given. When I take it back in for service, I'll have the tech sit in the front seat while I stop and find out what they think.

No, passenger seat belt warning lights, "PASS" with a air-bag icon above the climate control panel, is for FRONT passenger only. It has nothing to do with rear passengers. Personally I found this amber light is a little distractive, like those outside-air and recirculation indicating LED lights. I believe if everything is in proper and safe order, you shouldn't see any bright warning/indicating lights to distract you.

With the seat belt warning lights, if you look closely at that panel, shine a light on it, you'll see on the left side near the clock that there are 3 seat belt warning icons, and the word "rear." In the photo, you can see the 3 seat belt warning icons, and the word "rear" is to the left. I had a hard time getting the lighting right for the photo. I'm just curious if this is a feature that's there, but Mazda decided not to activate it.

 

[yrwei52]

Front Passenger Seat Belt Emergency Locking Mode

Seat belt pretensioner, like air bag, needs to detonate an explosive and retract the lose seat belt during the severe frontal collision. It's different from locking systems.

... My issue is that if I brake suddenly, the drivers seat belt emergency locking mode will engage a lot sooner than the front passenger seat.

If you can tell the difference between driver and front passenger seat belts in "emergency locking", then that's the best way to show the tech that there might be a problem on front passenger's seat belt.

With the seat belt warning lights, if you look closely at that panel, shine a light on it, you'll see on the left side near the clock that there are 3 seat belt warning icons, and the word "rear." In the photo, you can see the 3 seat belt warning icons, and the word "rear" is to the left. I had a hard time getting the lighting right for the photo. I'm just curious if this is a feature that's there, but Mazda decided not to activate it.

Yours is a '15 and the passenger seat belt warning lights could be different. As wearing the seat belt on rear seat with a adult is not mandated in US, I haven't seen any cars has rear seat belt warning lights for rear passengers. The observation you've found could be just reserved for future use or for regions where wearing the seat belt is required for rear passengers.

 

[Cis4]

If you can tell the difference between driver and front passenger seat belts in "emergency locking", then that's the best way to show the tech that there might be a problem on front passenger's seat belt.

I talked to the Mazda tech when I went to get the car serviced. He said that the belt does not lock as quickly to allow the passenger to be closer to the airbag in the event of a collision. We had someone drive us in a 2016 and it was the same deal, if you break suddenly and quickly, the front passenger seat belt allows you to move pretty far forward before locking in place, but the drivers and rear passenger seat belts lock more quickly.

Now that we know this is by design, my husband doesn't feel safe in the front passenger seat because he's continually flung about the cabin. It's not just that in the event of emergency breaking we're both afraid we'll hit the windshield before the seat belt catches us, but it's also when cornering aggressively. While turning right, the person in the passenger seat travels pretty far to the left. I think I'm going to start calling him Ms. Daisy and put him in the back seat from now on.

I know I'm in the minority (possibly only one here) on thinking that this is an issue. Thankfully this is my daily driver, and he has his own car that we can use when we go out together.

Yours is a '15 and the passenger seat belt warning lights could be different. As wearing the seat belt on rear seat with a adult is not mandated in US, I haven't seen any cars has rear seat belt warning lights for rear passengers. The observation you've found could be just reserved for future use or for regions where wearing the seat belt is required for rear passengers.

You're right, it is an option for a different region, you can see them illuminated here, above where it says, "Pax seat heating control." http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/show...YOU-NOT-LIKE&p=6395788&viewfull=1#post6395788

 

[MikeM.]

Now that we know this is by design, my husband doesn't feel safe in the front passenger seat because he's continually flung about the cabin. It's not just that in the event of emergency breaking we're both afraid we'll hit the windshield before the seat belt catches us, but it's also when cornering aggressively. While turning right, the person in the passenger seat travels pretty far to the left.

The CX-5 could not achieve the top safety rating it has if it allowed passengers to hit the windshield. Keep in mind, the powerful active pre-tensioner charge will actually wind up the slack in the belt before the passengers body impacts the windshield. This means if the mechanical cam is latched (due to hard breaking before impact), the pre-tensioner charge will pull the slack back before the body experiences the main impact. I trust that it works but I never want to experience it.

I think I'm going to start calling him Ms. Daisy and put him in the back seat from now on.

Maybe he could also use a core muscle workout routine for the side to side issue. If he resists that idea get him a leather collar w/leash and use a small whip to keep him performing the routine properly.(rlaugh)

 

[Srad600]

As wearing the seat belt on rear seat with a adult is not mandated in US, I haven't seen any cars has rear seat belt warning lights for rear passengers.

I can't speak with certainty to most of the issues in this thread, but I can tell you this statement is incorrect. In California (and I believe in most US states) ANY passenger in ANY seat regardless of age must be wearing a safety belt so long as the car is in motion. If not the driver will be issued a ticket/fine.

I agree that if the OP can feel a difference between how the driver and passenger seats react to a short stop then take the car to the dealer and have them investigate. My wife has yet to ride in my CX-5, but hopefully this isn't an issue with our car.

 

[yrwei52]

As wearing the seat belt on rear seat with a adult is not mandated in US, I haven't seen any cars has rear seat belt warning lights for rear passengers.

I can't speak with certainty to most of the issues in this thread, but I can tell you this statement is incorrect. In California (and I believe in most US states) ANY passenger in ANY seat regardless of age must be wearing a safety belt so long as the car is in motion. If not the driver will be issued a ticket/fine.

Currently there are 23 states in the US don't have mandatory rear seat belt law for adults. When I said "As wearing the seat belt on rear seat with a adult is not mandated in US, I haven't seen any cars has rear seat belt warning lights for rear passengers.", it a generalization way for saying the US as a whole country doesn't have a mandatory rear seat belt law for adults. Hence the automakers have to disable the rear seat belt warning light as they can't make this light custom made for each state for different state laws.

 

[jjp735i]

After reading this I've just tested my BMW and Scion Tc and yes the belts lock up under hard braking to keep you from flying forward. How did Mazda get 5 star if the seat belt lets you fly forward like that.

There are times when you have to lock up the brakes and to me the seat belts should tighten. Sounds like a flaw in design to me.

Front seat belt pretensioner has nothing to do with the seat belts locking up when hard braking. It's the sudden pull on the belt that locks it up. The pretensioner works with the airbag system when deployed. To different things.



Maybe rethink my new car choice.

 

[Srad600]

Currently there are 23 states in the US don't have mandatory rear seat belt law for adults. When I said "As wearing the seat belt on rear seat with a adult is not mandated in US, I haven't seen any cars has rear seat belt warning lights for rear passengers.", it a generalization way for saying the US as a whole country doesn't have a mandatory rear seat belt law for adults. Hence the automakers have to disable the rear seat belt warning light as they can't make this light custom made for each state for different state laws.

Well 27/50 = most states. (rofl2)
Seriously, US automakers absolutely CAN make a different idiot light for some states and not for others. Basically that's just two versions, V1 = lights for 27 states & V2 = no lights for the remainder. Look at it this way, car makers have entirely different emissions standards just for California and they still make two versions of every car just to satisfy one state (much less 27 of them).

I do agree that they (auto makers) will likely not want to do that though.

 

[MikeM.]

Look at it this way, car makers have entirely different emissions standards just for California and they still make two versions of every car just to satisfy one state (much less 27 of them).

I know that was typical years ago, my understanding was that most cars sold in the U.S. are now CA emissions compliant. Is there a difference between a California CX-5's and the rest of the U.S.?

If California was a country, it would have the 5th biggest economy in the world! So, yes, they have a lot of influence when it comes to dictating standards. As far as I'm concerned, it's a good thing they keep the manufacturers working hard to make their products more compatible with good health.

 

[piotrek91]

We live in the Bay Area, emergency breaking is a given.

Very true! Lots of overly eager brake uses in the Bay Area.
Is that a car merging onto the freeway 100 yards away? I better test the ABS!

I know that was typical years ago, my understanding was that most cars sold in the U.S. are now CA emissions compliant. Is there a difference between a California CX-5's and the rest of the U.S.?

I think I saw some TSB that had different PCM files for the CA and FED emissions cars.

 

[Srad600]

I know that was typical years ago, my understanding was that most cars sold in the U.S. are now CA emissions compliant. Is there a difference between a California CX-5's and the rest of the U.S.?

A number of states have adopted the C.A.R.B. standards, but not all of them. Last count I think it was somewhere around 14 states (in addition to CA). So as I understand it, there are still two versions of emissions standards in the US. You still can't register a non-California car in CA unless it has more than 7,500 miles on it / or is certified to meet CARB standards.

 

[MikeM.]

. You still can't register a non-California car in CA unless it has more than 7,500 miles on it / or is certified to meet CARB standards.

I understand that a car needs to meet CA emissions before it can be sold in CA. My impression was that some automakers were only sending CA compliant cars to the United States. In other words, it was easier to make them all CA compliant than to have two different versions.

If CA CX-5's have different PCM files, wouldn't that mean CA cars would not produce the advertised specs in terms of HP, MPG, etc.? So, if I bought my 2.0L CX-5 in CA I wouldn't be getting 32.5 MPG since new and I wouldn't have 155hp on tap? Just curious.

 

[andyg]

How bad do you drive??????

I talked to the Mazda tech when I went to get the car serviced. He said that the belt does not lock as quickly to allow the passenger to be closer to the airbag in the event of a collision. We had someone drive us in a 2016 and it was the same deal, if you break suddenly and quickly, the front passenger seat belt allows you to move pretty far forward before locking in place, but the drivers and rear passenger seat belts lock more quickly.

Now that we know this is by design, my husband doesn't feel safe in the front passenger seat because he's continually flung about the cabin. It's not just that in the event of emergency breaking we're both afraid we'll hit the windshield before the seat belt catches us, but it's also when cornering aggressively. While turning right, the person in the passenger seat travels pretty far to the left. I think I'm going to start calling him Ms. Daisy and put him in the back seat from now on.

I know I'm in the minority (possibly only one here) on thinking that this is an issue. Thankfully this is my daily driver, and he has his own car that we can use when we go out together.


You're right, it is an option for a different region, you can see them illuminated here, above where it says, "Pax seat heating control." http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/show...YOU-NOT-LIKE&p=6395788&viewfull=1#post6395788

 

[Cis4]

Maybe he could also use a core muscle workout routine for the side to side issue. If he resists that idea get him a leather collar w/leash and use a small whip to keep him performing the routine properly.(rlaugh)

Haha, the Folsom St. Fair is this weekend, so I might be able to find a good trainer for him!

After reading this I've just tested my BMW and Scion Tc and yes the belts lock up under hard braking to keep you from flying forward. How did Mazda get 5 star if the seat belt lets you fly forward like that.

There are times when you have to lock up the brakes and to me the seat belts should tighten. Sounds like a flaw in design to me.

Front seat belt pretensioner has nothing to do with the seat belts locking up when hard braking. It's the sudden pull on the belt that locks it up. The pretensioner works with the airbag system when deployed. To different things.

Maybe rethink my new car choice.

You're right, it is not the pretensioner. I've had a lot of trouble trying to figure out exactly what the mechanism is called. This Tesla thread (cached version because I'm not a registered member), calls it an "inertia reel" which makes more sense.

I still love the car and think it's the best vehicle compared to its competition in its segment. As MikeM mentioned, it does have a top safety rating, so even though it's annoying, it's working like it should, I hope. Besides, it's called the #1 passenger death seat for a reason, right?

How bad do you drive??????

We both drive pretty aggressively, but we also live near here, and with a zoom zoom car, you can bet I'm going to accelerate through these curves going up and down hill. We drive the same way in pretty much every car we've driven, and it's never been an issue.

 

[Srad600]

Haha, the Folsom St. Fair is this weekend, so I might be able to find a good trainer for him!

Is that this weekend...where are my chaps...(whip)

We both drive pretty aggressively, but we also live near here, and with a zoom zoom car, you can bet I'm going to accelerate through these curves going up and down hill. We drive the same way in pretty much every car we've driven, and it's never been an issue.

Now I understand, Grizzly Peak is my favorite route home to avoid the Hwy. (wrc)

I understand that a car needs to meet CA emissions before it can be sold in CA. My impression was that some automakers were only sending CA compliant cars to the United States. In other words, it was easier to make them all CA compliant than to have two different versions.

As far as production of a single "California legal" car by any auto manufacturer, I don't have that information. I know that the registration law is still in effect, which leads me to believe that the single car design is not in place, otherwise the law would be useless. Maybe not useless (due to older vehicles) but they would need to rewrite it to exclude the new CA legal cars. It'd be interesting to research this though.

If CA CX-5's have different PCM files, wouldn't that mean CA cars would not produce the advertised specs in terms of HP, MPG, etc.? So, if I bought my 2.0L CX-5 in CA I wouldn't be getting 32.5 MPG since new and I wouldn't have 155hp on tap? Just curious.

In theory yes, the spec's for a CA vehicle would differ slightly from a non-CA vehicle due to the added smog equipment.

 

[MikeM.]

In theory yes, the spec's for a CA vehicle would differ slightly from a non-CA vehicle due to the added smog equipment.

I ordered mine from the Mazda factory three years ago here in NW Washington State. It has a California emissions compliant plaque under the hood. Looking on the internet I see lots of states require new cars to be CA compliant, especially in populous states in the NE. So, I'm guessing, if there is such a thing as a US spec CX-5 that is not CA compliant, it's in the minority, not majority. Still, it's the peppiest, best running and most efficient little 2.0L I've ever driven. Maybe they are all CA compliant?

If not, I'm wondering what additional smog equipment my CX-5 has that some other US CX-5's don't?

 

[Srad600]

I ordered mine from the Mazda factory three years ago here in NW Washington State. It has a California emissions compliant plaque under the hood. Looking on the internet I see lots of states require new cars to be CA compliant, especially in populous states in the NE. So, I'm guessing, if there is such a thing as a US spec CX-5 that is not CA compliant, it's in the minority, not majority. Still, it's the peppiest, best running and most efficient little 2.0L I've ever driven. Maybe they are all CA compliant?

If not, I'm wondering what additional smog equipment my CX-5 has that some other US CX-5's don't?

Washington is one of the (14) states that are CARB compliant, so that makes sense.