1996 BUICK CENTURY Owners Manual

=Shoulder Belt
The positions next to the windows have lap-shoulder
belts. Here’s how
to wear one properly.
I
If the belt stops before it reaches the buckle, tilt the latch
plate and keep pulling until you can buckle it.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Don’t let it get
twisted.
If the belt is not long enough, see “Safety Belt
Extender’’ at the end of this section. Make sure the
release button on the buckle is positioned
so you would
be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly if you ever
had to.
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3. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end of the belt as you pull up
on the shoulder part.
I I I 1 I I I I
, I I I I I
The lap part of the belt should be worn low and snug on
the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies
force
to the strong pelvic bones. And you’d be less likely
to slide under the lap belt. If you slid under it,
the belt
would apply force at your abdomen. This could cause
serious or
even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go
over the shoulder and across the chest. These parts
of the
body are best able to take belt restraining forces.
The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop
or a crash.
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Children
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder belt is
too loose. In a crash, you would move forward
too much, which could increase injury. The
shoulder belt should fit against your body.
To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle. Everyone
in
a vehicle needs protection! That includes
infants and all children smaller than adult size. In fact,
the
law in every state in the United States and in every
Canadian province says children up to some age must be
restrained
while in a vehicle.
I A CAUTION:
Smaller children and babies should always be
restrained in a child or infant restraint. The
instructions for the restraint will say whether it is
the right type and size
for your child. A very
young child’s hip bones are so small that a
regular belt might not stay low on the hips, as it
should. Instead, the belt will likely be over the
child’s abdomen. In
a crash, the belt would apply
force right on the child’s abdomen, which could
cause serious
or fatal injuries. So, be sure that
any child small enough for one is always properly
restrained in
a child or infant restraint.
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I.
Never hold a baby in your arms while riding in a
vehicle. A baby doesn't weigh much -- until a
crash. During a crash a baby will become so
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
heavy you can't hold it.
For example, in a crash
at only
25 mph (40 km/h), a 12-1b. (5.5 kg) baby
will suddenly become
a 240-lb. (110 kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
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Child Restraints
Be sure the child restraint is designed to be used in a
vehicle. If it is, it will have
a label saying that it meets
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
Then
follow the instructions for the restraint. You may
find these instructions on the restraint itself or
in a
booklet, or both. These restraints use the belt system in
your vehicle, but the child also has to be secured within
the restraint to help reduce the chance of personal injury.
The instructions that come with the infant or child
restraint will show you how to
do that.
Where to Put the Restraint
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat. We at
General Motors therefore recommend that you put your
child restraint in the rear seat unless the child is an
infant and you’re the only adult in the vehicle. In that
case, you might want to secure the restraint in the front
seat where you can keep
an eye on the baby.
Wherever you install it, be sure to secure the child
restraint properly.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child restraint can move
around in a collision or sudden stop and injure people in
the vehicle. Be sure to properly secure any child
restraint in your vehicle
-- even when no child is in it.
Top Strap
If your child restraint has a top strap, it should be
anchored.
If you need to have an anchor installed, you
can ask your Buick dealer to put it in for you. If you
want
to install an anchor yourself, your dealer can tell
you how to do it.
If you want to use a child restraint with a top strap in the
second seat of a station wagon, have your dealer install a
combination anchor-tether belt to which the top strap
can be hooked.
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For cars first sold in Canada, child restraints with a top
strap must be anchored according to Canadian law.
Your dealer can obtain the hardware kit and install it for
you, or you may install it yourself using the instructions
provided in the kit.
Use the tether hardware kit available from the dealer.
The hardware and installation instructions were
specifically designed for this vehicle.
You’ll be using the lap-shoulder belt. See the earlier part
about the top strap if the child restraint has one.
1. Put the restraint on the seat. Follow the instructions
for the child restraint.
2. Secure the child in the child restraint as the
instructions say.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder
portions
of the vehicle’s safety belt through or
around the restraint. The child restraint instructions will show you how.
Tilt the latch plate to adjust
the belt if needed.
If the shoulder belt goes in front of the child’s face or
neck, put it behind the child restraint.
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4. Buckle the belt. Make sure the release button is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to. 5. To tighten the belt, pull up on the shoulder belt while
6. Push and pull the child restraint in different
To remove the child restraint, just unbuckle the vehicle’s
safety belt and let it go back all the way. The safety belt
will move freely again and be ready to work
for an adult
or larger child passenger.
you push
down on
the child restraint.
directions to be sure it is secure.
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Securing a Child Restraint in a Center
Seat Position
U
You'll be using the lap belt.
See the earlier part about the top strap
if the child
restraint has
one.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Make the belt as long as possible by tilting the latch
plate and pulling it along the belt.
Put the restraint on the seat. Follow
the instructions
for the child restraint.
Secure the child in the child restraint
as the
instructions say.
Run the vehicle's safety belt through or around the
restraint. The child restraint instructions will show
you how.
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