1996 CHEVROLET EXPRESS child restraint

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special things to
know about
safety belts and children. And there are different
rules
for smaller children and babies. If a child will be riding
in your vehicle, see the part of this manual called
“Children.” Follow those rules for everyone’s protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll start with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear
it properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat (to see how, see “Seats” in the Index)
so you can sit up straight.
3.
4.
Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
Push
the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up
on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt isn’t 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.
1-13

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown until
the belt is snug.
-Buckle, position and release it the same way as the lap
part
of a lap-shoulder belt. If the belt isn’t 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.
Children
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.
Smaller Children and Babies (Except Cargo
Vans
with Passt-- r Air B I
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.
1-34

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Smaller Children and Babies (Cargo Vans
with Passenger Air Bags)
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. Smaller children
and babies should always be restrained in
a child
restraint. However, infants, who should be
restrained in
a rear-facing child restraint, cannot
ride safely in this vehicle. The instructions for the
restraint will say whether it is the right type and
size for your child. If
a forward-facing child
restraint is suitable for your child, be sure the
child is always properly restrained while riding
in this vehicle. A CAUTION:
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
heavy you can’t hold it. For example, in a crash
CAUTION: (Continued)
I I
1-36

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine CAUTIOPT. ipontinuedi
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.
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 (Except Cargo
Vans and Cab and Chassis Models)
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 a rear seat. If your vehicle has a front passenger air bag,
neuer put a rear-facing child restraint
in the front passenger seat. Here’s why:
I A CAUTION: I
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured
if the right front passenger’s
air bag inflates. This is because the back of a
rear-facing child restraint would be very close to
the inflating air bag.
If your vehicle has a right
front passenger’s air bag, always secure a
rear-facing child restraint in a rear seat.
You may, however, secure a forward-facing child
restraint in the right front seat. Before you secure
a forward-facing child restraint, always move the
front passenger seat
as far back as it will go. Or,
secure the child restraint in a
rear seat.
Wherever you install it, be sure to secure the child
-estraint 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.
1-37

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Where to. Put the Restraint (Cargo Vans
and Cab and Chassis Models)
The child restraint must be secured properly in the
passenger seat. If your vehicle has a passenger air bag,
never- put a rear-facing child restraint in this vehicle.
Here's why:
r"
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured if the passenger's
air bag
inflates. This
is because the back of a rear-facing
child restraint would
be very close to the inflating
air bag. Do not use a rear-facing child restraint in
this vehicle.
If a forward-facing child restraint is suitable for
your child, always move the passenger seat as
far
back as it will go.
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 GM dealer to put it in for you. If you want
to install an anchor yourself, your 'dealer can tell you
how to
do it.
1-38

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Outside Seat Position
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.
If the shoulder belt goes in front of the child’s face or
neck, put
it behind the child restraint.
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.
1-39

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 5. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of
the retractor
to set the lock.
6. To tighten the belt, feed the shoulder belt back
into the retractor while you push down on the
child restraint.
7. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to
be sure it is secure.
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.
1-40

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Securing a Child Restraint in a
Center Seat Position
You’ll be using the lap belt.
See the earlier part about the top strap if
the child
restraint has one.
I.
2.
3.
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.
1-41