1996 BUICK CENTURY belt

A CAUTION:
Don’t use the speciaI infantlchild seat attaching
hardware in another vehicle.
If you do, it may not
work well and the child may not be protected
properly in
a crash. The special hardware is for
your vehicle only.
Also, don’t use the special belt for anything but
securing a child restraint in the right front seat.
If an adult or older child uses it, the belt won’t
provide protection and may even increase injury
in a crash.
Once the special hardware is installed, please follow the
instructions
with it and these steps: 1. Unbuckle the automatic lap-shoulder belt by
pushing the button on the buckle. It will stay on
the door, ready to be rebuckled
for use by adults or
older children.
ProCarManuals.com

2. Snap one hook of the infantkhild seat attaching belt
near the
floor at the door side of the seat.
3. Put the belt's special latch plate into the vehicle's safety belt buckle.
ProCarManuals.com

4. You can make the belt longer by tilting the buckle
5. Put the restraint on the seat. Follow the instructions
and pulling
it along the belt.
for the child restraint.
6. Secure the child in the child restraint as the
instructions say.
The child restraint instructions will show you how.
7. Run the belt through or around the child restraint.
8. Put the hook on the free end through the slot in the
latch plate.
1-41
ProCarManuals.com

9.
10.
To make it tight, pull the belt while you push down
on the child restraint. If the belt won’t stay tight,
switch it end for end.
Push and pull the child restraint in different directions to
be sure it is secure.
Removing the InfantlChild Seat Restraint
1. Push the button on the safety belt buckle and remove
the special latch plate. Leave the latch plate on
the
special belt.
2. Push the spring on the hook near the door and
remove the special belt.
3. Put the belt away in a safe place in your vehicle, so it
won’t
fly around in a crash and injure someone.
4. Remember to reattach the automatic belt again,
once the child restraint is removed. Be sure
it
isn’t twisted.
1-42
ProCarManuals.com

Larger Children Children who have outgrown child restraints should wear the vehicle’s safety belts.
If you have the choice, a child should sit next to a
window
so the child can wear a lap-shoulder belt and
get the additional restraint
a shoulder belt can provide.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear seat. But they need
to use the
safety belts properly.
0 Children who aren’t buckled up can be thrown out
in a crash.
0 Children who aren’t buckled up can strike other
people who are.
1-43
ProCarManuals.com

Never do this.
Here two children
me wearing the same belt. The
belt can’t properly spread the impact
forces. In a
crash, the two children can be crushed together
and seriously injured.
A belt must be used by
only one person at a time.
e.’ What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder belt,
but the child is
so small that the shoulder belt is
very close to the child’s face or neck?
A: Move the child toward the center of the vehicle, but
be sure that the shoulder belt still
is on the child’s
shoulder,
so that in a crash the child’s upper body
would have the restraint that belts provide. If the
child is
so small that the shoulder belt is still very
close to the child’s face or neck,
you might want to
place the child in the center seat position, the one
that has only a lap belt.
1-44
ProCarManuals.com

Never do this.
Here
a child is sitting in a seat that has a
lap-shoulder belt, but the shoulder part
is behind
the child.
If the child wears the belt in this way, in
a crash the child might slide under the belt. The
belt’s force would ‘then be applied right
on the
child’s abdomen. That could cause serious or
fatal injuries.
Wherever the child sits, the lap portion of the belt
should be worn low and snug
on the hips, just touching
the child’s thighs. This applies belt force to the child’s
pelvic bones in a crash.
1-45
ProCarManuals.com

Safety Belt Extender
If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you, you
should
use it. The front seat lap-shoulder belts have
plenty of extra length built in,
so they will fit almost
all people.
But if a safety belt isn’t long enough to fasten, your
dealer will order you an extender. It’s free. When you go
in to order it, take the heaviest coat you will wear,
so the
extender will be long enough for you. The extender will
be just for you, and just for the seat in your vehicle that
you choose. Don’t let someone else use it, and use it
only for the seat it is made to fit. To wear it, just attach it
to the regular safety belt.
Checking Your Restraint Systems
Now and then, make sure the safety belt warning light
and all your belts, buckles, latch plates, retractors and
anchorages are working properly. Look for any other
loose or damaged safety belt system parts. If
you see
anything that might keep a safety belt system from
doing its job, have it repaired.
Torn or frayed safety belts may not protect you in a
crash. They can rip apart under impact forces. If a belt is
torn or frayed, get a new one right away.
Also look for any opened or broken air bag covers, and
have them repaired or replaced. (The air bag system
does not need regular maintenance.)
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After
a Crash
If you’ve had a crash, do you need new belts?
After a very minor collision, nothing may be necessary.
But if the belts were stretched, as they would be if worn
during a more severe crash, then you need new belts.
If belts are cut or damaged, replace them. Collision
damage also may mean you will need to have safety belt
or seat parts repaired or replaced. New parts and repairs
may be necessary even
if the belt wasn’t being used at
the time of the collision.
If an air bag inflates, you’ll need to replace air bag
system parts. See the part on the air bag system earlier
in
this section.
ProCarManuals.com