Subaru Ascent 2018-2026 Owner's Manual: General precautions regarding SRS airbag system and children

WARNING

Always ensure that children are seated in the rear seats of your Subaru Ascent and are properly restrained using appropriate safety systems. The SRS airbag deploys with extremely high speed and force, which can cause severe injuries or even be fatal to children, particularly if they are not correctly secured.

Accident data consistently shows that children are far safer when properly restrained in rear seating positions than in front passenger seats, making rear seating the safest option in the Subaru Ascent.

WARNING

NEVER INSTALL A CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT OF YOUR SUBARU ASCENT. Doing so places the child dangerously close to the SRS frontal airbag, which can deploy with enough force to cause serious injury or death.

WARNING

Never allow a child to stand, kneel, or move around on the front passenger seat of the Subaru Ascent.

If the SRS airbag deploys unexpectedly, the force involved can result in critical or fatal injuries to the child.

Never hold a child in your arms or on your lap while driving the Subaru Ascent. In the event of airbag deployment, the force generated can overpower your ability to hold the child securely, leading to severe or fatal consequences.

WARNING

• Never allow a child in the Subaru Ascent to engage in unsafe behaviors such as:
  • Kneeling on a seat while facing the side window.
  • Wrapping arms around the front seatback.
  • Leaning out of the window or placing any part of the body outside the vehicle.

  In the event of a collision, deployment of the Subaru Ascent SRS side airbags or curtain airbags can exert powerful forces that may cause serious injury if a child’s body is positioned too close to these areas.

• Because the Subaru Ascent is equipped with a front passenger SRS airbag, children should always be seated in the rear and must be properly restrained at all times for maximum safety.