Lincoln Zephyr (2006 year). Manual — part 9

All occupants of the vehicle, including the driver, should always
wear their safety belts even when an inflatable curtain is

provided.

To reduce the risk of injury, do not obstruct or place objects in
the deployment of the inflatable curtain.

How does the side air curtain system work?

The design and development of the
side air curtain system included
recommended testing procedures
that were developed by a group of
automotive safety experts known as
the Side Airbag Technical Working
Group. These recommended testing
procedures help reduce the risk of
injuries related to the deployment of
side airbags (including side air
curtain systems).

The side air curtain system consists
of the following:
• An inflatable nylon curtain with a

gas generator concealed behind
the headliner and above the
doors.

• The headliner will flex to open

above the side doors to allow air curtain deployment.

• The same warning light, electronic control and diagnostic unit as used

for the front airbags.

• Two crash sensors located under the outboard side of the front seats,

attached near the floor.

• Two crash sensors located at the base of the “C” pillars above the

wheel house.

Side air curtains and side airbags, in combination with safety belts, can
help reduce the risk of severe injuries in the event of a significant side
impact collision.

The side air curtains are mounted to the sheet metal above the first and
second row seats. In certain lateral collisions, the air curtain and

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

129

seat-mounted side airbag on the side affected by the collision will be
inflated, even if the respective seat is not occupied. The air curtain was
designed to inflate between the side window area and occupant to
further enhance the head protection provided to occupants in side
impact collisions. The seat-mounted side airbag was designed to inflate
between the door panel and occupant to further enhance the protection
provided occupants in side impact collision.

The side air curtain system SRS is designed to activate when the vehicle
sustains lateral deceleration sufficient to cause the sensors to close an
electrical circuit that initiates air curtain and seat-mounted side airbag
inflation.

The fact that the side air curtain and seat-mounted side airbag did not
inflate in a collision does not mean that something is wrong with the
system. Rather, it means the forces were not of the type sufficient to
cause activation. The side air curtain system is designed to inflate in side
impact collisions, not roll-over, rear impact, frontal or near-frontal
collisions, unless the collision causes sufficient lateral deceleration.

Several air bag system components get hot after inflation. Do not
touch them after inflation.

If the side air curtain has
deployed, the air curtain

will not function again. The
side air curtain system
(including the A, B and C
pillar trim and headliner) must
be inspected and serviced by
an authorized dealer. If the air
curtain is not replaced, the
unrepaired area will increase the
risk of injury in a collision.

Determining if the system is operational

The SRS uses a readiness light in the instrument cluster or a tone to
indicate the condition of the system. Refer to the Airbag readiness
section in the Instrument cluster chapter. Routine maintenance of the
airbag is not required.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

130

Any difficulty with the system is indicated by one or more of the
following:
• The readiness light (same light as used for front airbag system) will

either flash or stay lit.

• The readiness light will not illuminate immediately after ignition is

turned to the RUN position.

• A series of five beeps will be heard. The tone pattern will repeat

periodically until the problem and light are repaired.

If any of these things happen, even intermittently, have the SRS serviced
at an authorized dealer immediately. Unless serviced, the system may not
function properly in the event of a collision.

Disposal of airbags and airbag equipped vehicles (including
pretensioners)

See your authorized dealer. Airbags MUST BE disposed of by qualified
personnel.

SAFETY RESTRAINTS FOR CHILDREN

See the following sections for directions on how to properly use safety
restraints for children. Also see Airbag supplemental restraint system
(SRS) in this chapter for special instructions about using airbags.

Important child restraint precautions

You are required by law to use safety restraints for children in the U.S.
and Canada. If small children (generally children who are four years old
or younger and who weigh 40 lb. [18 kg] or less) ride in your vehicle, you
must put them in safety seats made especially for children. Many states
require that children use approved booster seats until they are eight
years old. Check your local and state or provincial laws for specific
requirements regarding the safety of children in your vehicle. When
possible, always place children under age 12 in the rear seat of your
vehicle. Accident statistics suggest that children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating position.

Never let a passenger hold a child on his or her lap while the
vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the child from

injury in a collision.

Always follow the instructions and warnings that come with any infant or
child restraint you might use.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

131

Children and safety belts

If the child is the proper size, restrain the child in a safety seat. Children
who are too large for child safety seats (as specified by your child safety
seat manufacturer) should always wear safety belts.

Follow all the important safety restraint and airbag precautions that
apply to adult passengers in your vehicle.

If the shoulder belt portion of a combination lap and shoulder belt can
be positioned so it does not cross or rest in front of the child’s face or
neck, the child should wear the lap and shoulder belt. Moving the child
closer to the center of the vehicle may help provide a good shoulder belt
fit.

Do not leave children, unreliable adults, or pets unattended in
your vehicle.

Child booster seats

Children outgrow a typical convertible or toddler seat when they weigh
40 lb. (18 kg) and are around 4 years of age. Although the lap/shoulder
belt will provide some protection, these children are still too small for
lap/shoulder belts to fit properly, which could increase the risk of serious
injury in a crash.

To improve the fit of both the lap and shoulder belt on children who
have outgrown child safety seats, Ford Motor Company recommends use
of a belt-positioning booster.

Booster seats position a child so that safety belts fit better. They lift the
child up so that the lap belt rests low across the hips and the knees
bend comfortably. Booster seats may also make the shoulder belt fit
better and more comfortably. Try to keep the belt near the middle of the
shoulder.

When children should use booster seats

Children need to use booster seats from the time they outgrow the
toddler seat until they are big enough for the vehicle seat and
lap/shoulder belt to fit properly. Generally this is when they weigh about
80 lb. (36 kg) (about 8 to 12 years old).

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

132

Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions:
• Can the child sit all the way back

against the vehicle seat back with
knees bent comfortably at the
edge of the seat without
slouching?

• Does the lap belt rest low across

the hips?

• Is the shoulder belt centered on

the shoulder and chest?

• Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
Types of booster seats

There are two types of belt-positioning booster seats:
• Those that are backless.

If your backless booster seat has a
removable shield, remove the
shield and use the lap/shoulder
belt. If a seating position has a
low seat back and no head
restraint, a backless booster seat
may place your child’s head (top
of ear level) above the top of the
seat. In this case, move the
backless booster to another
seating position with a higher seat back and lap/shoulder belts.

• Those with a high back.

If, with a backless booster seat,
you cannot find a seating position
that adequately supports your
child’s head, a high back booster
seat would be a better choice.

Either type can be used at any seating position equipped with
lap/shoulder belts if your child is over 40 lb. (18 kg).

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

133

Children and booster seats vary widely in size and shape. Choose a
booster that keeps the lap belt low and snug across the hips, never up
across the stomach, and lets you adjust the shoulder belt to cross the
chest and rest snugly near the center of the shoulder. The drawings
below compare the ideal fit (center) to a shoulder belt uncomfortably
close to the neck and a shoulder belt that could slip off the shoulder.

If the booster seat slides on the vehicle seat, placing a rubberized mesh
sold as shelf or carpet liner under the booster seat may improve this
condition.

The importance of shoulder belts

Using a booster without a shoulder belt increases the risk of a child’s
head hitting a hard surface in a collision. For this reason, you should
never use a booster seat with a lap belt only. It is best to use a booster
seat with lap/shoulder belts in the back seat- the safest place for children
to ride.

Move a child to a different seating location if the shoulder belt
does not stay positioned on the shoulder during use.

Follow all instructions provided by the manufacturer of the
booster seat.

Never put the shoulder belt under a child’s arm or behind the
back because it eliminates the protection for the upper part of

the body and may increase the risk of injury or death in a collision.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

134

Never use pillows, books, or towels to boost a child. They can
slide around and increase the likelihood of injury or death in a

collision.

SAFETY SEATS FOR CHILDREN

Child and infant or child safety seats

Use a safety seat that is recommended for the size and weight of the
child. Carefully follow all of the manufacturer’s instructions with the
safety seat you put in your vehicle. If you do not install and use the
safety seat properly, the child may be injured in a sudden stop or
collision.

When installing a child safety seat:
• Review and follow the information

presented in the Airbag
Supplemental Restraint System
section in this chapter.

• Use the correct safety belt buckle

for that seating position.

• Insert the belt tongue into the

proper buckle until you hear a
snap and feel it latch. Make sure
the tongue is securely fastened in
the buckle.

• Keep the buckle release button pointing up and away from the safety

seat, with the tongue between the child seat and the release button,
to prevent accidental unbuckling.

• Place seat back in upright position.
• Put the safety belt in the automatic locking mode. Refer to Automatic

locking mode.

• LATCH lower anchors are recommended for use by children up to 48

lb (22 kg) in a child restraint. Top tether anchors can be used for
children up to 60 lb (27 kg) in a child restraint, and to provide upper
torso restraint for children up to 80 lb (36 kg) using an upper torso
harness and a belt-positioning booster.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

135

Ford Motor Company recommends the use of a child safety seat having a
top tether strap. Install the child safety seat in a seating position with
LATCH and tether anchors. For more information on top tether straps
and anchors, refer to Attaching safety seats with tether straps in this
chapter. For more information of LATCH anchors refer to Attaching
safety seats with LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children)
attachments in this chapter.

Carefully follow all of the manufacturer’s instructions included
with the safety seat you put in your vehicle. If you do not install

and use the safety seat properly, the child may be injured in a sudden
stop or collision.

Rear-facing child seats or infant carriers should never be placed
in front of an active passenger airbag.

Installing child safety seats with combination lap and shoulder
belts

Airbags can kill or injure a child in a child seat. NEVER place a

rear-facing child seat in front of an active airbag. If you must use

a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move the seat all the way
back.

Children 12 and under should be properly restrained in the rear
seat whenever possible.

1. Position the child safety seat in a
seat with a combination lap and
shoulder belt.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

136

2. Pull down on the shoulder belt
and then grasp the shoulder belt
and lap belt together.

3. While holding the shoulder and
lap belt portions together, route the
tongue through the child seat
according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions. Be sure
the belt webbing is not twisted.

4. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle (the buckle closest to
the direction the tongue is coming
from) for that seating position until
you hear a snap and feel the latch
engage. Make sure the tongue is
latched securely by pulling on it.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

137

5. To put the retractor in the
automatic locking mode, grasp the
shoulder portion of the belt and pull
downward until all of the belt is
pulled out and a click is heard.

6. Allow the belt to retract. The belt will click as it retracts to indicate it
is in the automatic locking mode.

7. Pull the lap belt portion across
the child seat toward the buckle and
pull up on the shoulder belt while
pushing down with your knee on the
child seat.

8. Allow the safety belt to retract to
remove any slack in the belt.

9. Before placing the child in the
seat, forcibly move the seat forward
and back to make sure the seat is
securely held in place. To check
this, grab the seat at the belt path
and attempt to move it side to side
and forward. There should be no
more than one inch of movement for
proper installation.

10. Try to pull the belt out of the retractor to make sure the retractor is
in the automatic locking mode (you should not be able to pull more belt
out). If the retractor is not locked, unbuckle the belt and repeat Steps 2
through 9.

Check to make sure the child seat is properly secured before each use.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

138

Attaching child safety seats with tether straps

Most new forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap which
goes over the back of the seat and hooks to an anchoring point. Tether
straps are available as an accessory for many older safety seats. Contact
the manufacturer of your child seat for information about ordering a
tether strap.

The rear seats of your vehicle are equipped with built-in tether strap
anchors located behind the seats as described below.

The tether anchors in your vehicle are located under a cover marked
with the tether anchor symbol (shown with title).

The tether strap anchors in your
vehicle are in the following positions
(shown from top view):

Attach the tether strap only to the appropriate tether anchor as
shown. The tether strap may not work properly if attached

somewhere other than the correct tether anchor.

1. Position the child safety seat on the seat cushion.

2. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.

For vehicles with adjustable head restraints, route the tether strap under
the head restraint and between the head restraint posts, otherwise route
the tether strap over the top of the seatback.

3. Locate the correct anchor for the
selected seating position.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

139

4. Open the tether anchor cover.

5. Clip the tether strap to the
anchor as shown.

If the tether strap is clipped
incorrectly, the child safety

seat may not be retained properly
in the event of a collision.

6. Install the child safety seat tightly using the LATCH anchors or safety
belts. Follow the instructions in this chapter.

7. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions.

If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child
being injured in a collision greatly increases.

Attaching safety seats with LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children) attachments for child seat anchors

Some child safety seats have two rigid or webbing mounted attachments
that connect to two anchors at certain seating positions in your vehicle.
This type of child seat eliminates the need to use safety belts to attach
the child seat. For forward-facing child seats, the tether strap must also
be attached to the proper tether anchor. See Attaching safety seats with
tether straps in this chapter.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

140

Your vehicle has LATCH anchors for child seat installation at the seating
positions marked with the child seat symbol.

The anchors at the center of the
rear seat are further apart than the
sets of lower anchors for child seat
installation at other seating
positions. A child seat with rigid
LATCH attachments cannot be
installed at this seating position.
LATCH compatible child seats (with
attachments on belt webbing) can
be used at this seating position only if the child seat instructions state
that the child seat can be installed to anchors that are spaced up to 20
inches (500 mm) apart. Do not attach a child seat to any lower anchor if
an adjacent child seat is attached to that anchor.

Never attach two LATCH child safety seats to the same anchor.
In a crash, one anchor may not be strong enough to hold two

child safety seat attachments and may break, causing serious injury or
death.

The lower anchors for child seat
installation are located at the rear
section of the rear seat between the
cushion and seat back. The LATCH
anchors are below the locator
symbols on the seat back.

Follow the child seat manufacturer’s instructions to properly install a
child seat with LATCH attachments.

Attach LATCH lower attachments of the child seat only to the
anchors shown.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

141

If you install a child seat with rigid LATCH attachments, do not tighten
the tether strap enough to lift the child seat off the vehicle seat cushion
when the child is seated in it. Keep the tether strap just snug without
lifting the front of the child seat. Keeping the child seat just touching the
vehicle seat gives the best protection in a severe crash.

Each time you use the safety seat, check that the seat is properly
attached to the lower anchors and tether anchor. Try to tilt the child
seat from side to side. Also try to tug the seat forward. Check to see if
the anchors hold the seat in place.

If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child
being injured in a crash greatly increases.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

142

INFORMATION ABOUT UNIFORM TIRE QUALITY GRADING

New vehicles are fitted with tires
that have a rating on them called
Tire Quality Grades. The Quality
grades can be found where
applicable on the tire sidewall
between tread shoulder and
maximum section width. For
example:
• Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
These Tire Quality Grades are determined by standards that the United
States Department of Transportation has set.

Tire Quality Grades apply to new pneumatic tires for use on passenger
cars. They do not apply to deep tread, winter-type snow tires,
space-saver or temporary use spare tires, tires with nominal rim
diameters of 10 to 12 inches or limited production tires as defined in
Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations Part 575.104(c)(2).

U.S. Department of Transportation-Tire quality grades: The U.S.
Department of Transportation requires Ford Motor Company to give you
the following information about tire grades exactly as the government
has written it.

Treadwear

The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on the wear rate of
the tire when tested under controlled conditions on a specified
government test course. For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one
and one-half (1 1/2) times as well on the government course as a tire
graded 100. The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual
conditions of their use, however, and may depart significantly from the
norm due to variations in driving habits, service practices, and
differences in road characteristics and climate.

Traction AA A B C

The traction grades, from highest to lowest are AA, A, B, and C. The
grades represent the tire’s ability to stop on wet pavement as measured
under controlled conditions on specified government test surfaces of
asphalt and concrete. A tire marked C may have poor traction
performance.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Tires, Wheels and Loading

143

The traction grade assigned to this tire is based on
straight-ahead braking traction tests, and does not include

acceleration, cornering, hydroplaning or peak traction characteristics.

Temperature A B C

The temperature grades are A (the highest), B and C, representing the
tire’s resistance to the generation of heat and its ability to dissipate heat
when tested under controlled conditions on a specified indoor laboratory
test wheel. Sustained high temperature can cause the material of the tire
to degenerate and reduce tire life, and excessive temperature can lead to
sudden tire failure. The grade C corresponds to a level of performance
which all passenger car tires must meet under the Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard No. 109. Grades B and A represent higher levels of
performance on the laboratory test wheel than the minimum required by
law.

The temperature grade for this tire is established for a tire that
is properly inflated and not overloaded. Excessive speed,

underinflation, or excessive loading, either separately or in
combination, can cause heat buildup and possible tire failure.

TIRES

Tires are designed to give many thousands of miles of service, but they
must be maintained in order to get the maximum benefit from them.

Glossary of tire terminology
• Tire label: A label showing the OE (Original Equipment) tire sizes,

recommended inflation pressure and the maximum weight the vehicle
can carry.

• Tire Identification Number (TIN): A number on the sidewall of

each tire providing information about the tire brand and
manufacturing plant, tire size and date of manufacture. Also referred
to as DOT code.

• Inflation pressure: A measure of the amount of air in a tire.
• Standard load: A class of P-metric or Metric tires designed to carry a

maximum load at 35 psi [37 psi (2.5 bar) for Metric tires]. Increasing
the inflation pressure beyond this pressure will not increase the tire’s
load carrying capability.

2006 Zephyr (378)
Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt)
USA (fus)

Tires, Wheels and Loading

144