1997 CADILLAC CATERA Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
The belt should
go back out of the way.
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone, including pregnant
women. Like all occupants,
they are more likely to be
seriously injured if they don’t wear safety belts.
Before you close the door, be sure the belt
is out of the
way.
If you slam the door on it, you can damage both the
belt and your vehicle.
A pregnant woman should wear a lap-shoulder belt, and
the lap portion should be worn as low as possible, below
the rounding, throughout the pregnancy.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the
mother. When a safety belt is worn properly, it’s more
likely that the fetus won’t be hurt in a crash. For
pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective is wearing them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
The right front passenger’s safety belt works the same
way as the driver’s safety belt. See “Driver Position,”
earlier in this section.
When the shoulder belt is pulled out all the way, it will
lock. If it does, let it go back all the way and start again.
Air Bag Systems
This part explains the frontal and side impact air
bag systems.
Your Catera has air bags
-- a frontal air bag for the
driver and another frontal air bag for the right front
passenger. Your vehicle may also have side impact air
bags
-- a side impact air bag for the driver and another
side impact air bag for the right front passenger. If
your vehicle has side impact air bags, it will say
AIR
BAG on the air bag covering on the side of the driver’s
and right front passenger’s seatback closest to the door.
Here are the most important things to know about the air
bag systems:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if
you aren’t wearing your safety belt
-- even if you
have an air bag. Wearing your safety belt during
a crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things
inside the vehicle or being ejected from
it. Air
bags are “supplemental restraints’’ to the safety
belts. All air bags are designed to work with
safety belts but don’t replace them.
CAUTION: (Continued)
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine rn
CAUTION: (Continued)
Frontal
air bags for the driver and right front
passenger are designed to work only in moderate
to severe crashes where the front of your vehicle
hits something. They aren’t designed to inflate at
all in rollover,
rear, side or low-speed frontal
crashes. The side impact
air bags for the driver
and right front passenger are designed to inflate
only in moderate to severe crashes where
something hits the side of your vehicle, They
aren’t designed to inflate in frontal, in rollover or
in rear crashes. Everyone in your vehicle should
wear a safety belt properly
-- whether or not
there’s an air bag for that person.
I A CAUTION:
I
Both frontal and side impact air bags inflate with
great force, faster than the blink of an eye.
If
you’re too close to an inflating air bag, it could
seriously injure you. Safety belts help keep you in
position for air bag inflation before and during a
crash. Always wear your safety belt, even with air
bags. The driver should sit as far back as possible
while still maintaining control of the vehicle.
Front occupants should not lean on or sleep
against the door,
I A CAUTION:
rn
An inflating air bag can seriously injure small
children. Always secure children properly in your
vehicle. To read how, see the part of this manual
called “Children” and the caution label on the
right front passenger’s safety belt.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine There is an air bag
readiness light on the
instrument panel,
which shows the
air bag symbol.
The system checks the air bag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. See “Air Bag Readiness Light” in the Index
for more information. How the Air Bag Systems Work
Where are the air bags?
The driver’s frontal air bag is in the middle of the
steering wheel.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The right front passenger’s frontal air bag is in the
instrument panel on the passenger’s side. The
driver’s side impact air bag is in the side of the
driver’s seatback closest
to the door.
The right front passenger’s side impact air bag is in the
side
of the passenger’s seatback closest to the door.
A
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine I a CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and an air bag, the bag might not inflate properly or it
might force the object into that person. The path of an inflating air bag must be kept clear. Don’t
put anything between an occupant and an air
bag, and don’t attach or put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any other air
bag covering and don’t let seat covers block the
inflation path of a side impact air bag.
When should an air bag inflate?
The driver’s and right front passenger’s frontal air bags
are designed to inflate in moderate to severe frontal or
near-frontal crashes. The frontal air bags are designed to
inflate only if the impact speed is above the system’s
designed “threshold
level.” If your vehicle goes straight
into a wall that doesn’t move or deform, the threshold
level is about
9 to 15 mph (14 to 24 km/h). The
threshold level can vary, however, with specific vehicle
design,
so that it can be somewhat above or below this range.
If your vehicle strikes something that will move
or deform, such as a parked car, the threshold level will
be higher.
The driver’s and right front passenger’s
frontal air bags are not designed to inflate
in rollovers,
side impacts,
or rear impacts, because inflation would
not help the occupant.
The driver’s and right front passenger’s side impact air
bags
are designed to inflate in moderate to severe side
crashes involving
a front door. A side impact air bag
will inflate if the crash severity
is above the system’s
designed “threshold level.’’ The threshold level can vary
with specific vehicle design. Side impact air bags are not
designed to inflate in frontal or near-frontal impacts,
rollovers
or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
A side impact air bag will only
deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because
of the damage
to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle
of the impact and
how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal and
near-frontal impacts. For side impact air bags, inflation
is determined by the location of the impact and how
quickly the side of the vehicle deforms.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine What makes an air bag inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. For both
frontal and side impact air bags, the sensing system
triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which inflates
the air bag. The inflator, air bag and related hardware
are all part
of the air bag modules inside the steering
wheel, instrument panel and the side of the front
seatbacks closest to the door.
How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside
of the vehicle. The air bag supplements the protection
provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. But the frontal air
bags would not help you in many types of collisions,
including rollovers, rear impacts, and side impacts,
primarily because an occupant’s motion is not toward
the air bag. Side impact air bags would not help you in many
types of collisions, including frontal or near
frontal collisions, rollovers, and
rear impacts, primarily
because an occupant’s motion is not toward those air
bags. Air bags should never be regarded as anything
more than a supplement to safety belts, and then only in
moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions for
the driver’s and right front passenger’s frontal air bags,
and only in moderate to severe side collisions for the
driver’s and right front passenger’s side impact air bags.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After an air bag inflates, it quickly deflates, so quickly
that some people may not even realize the air bag
inflated. Some components of the air bag module
-- the
steering wheel hub for the driver’s air bag, the
instrument panel for the right front passenger’s bag, the
side of the seatback closest to the door for the driver and
right front passenger’s side impact air bags
-- will be
hot for a short time. The parts
of the bag that come into
contact with you may be warm, but not too hot to touch.
There will be some smoke and dust coming from the
vents in the deflated air bags. Air bag inflation doesn’t
prevent the driver from seeing or being able to steer the
vehicle, nor does it stop people from leaving the vehicle.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine I U I
When an air bag inflates, there is dust in the air.
This dust could cause breathing problems
for
people with a history of asthma or other
breathing trouble.
To avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon
as it is safe to do so.
If you have breathing problems but can’t get out
of the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh
air by opening a window or a door.
In many crashes severe enough to inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from the
right front passenger air bag.
Air bags are designed to inflate only once. After an
air bag inflates, you’ll need some new parts for your
air bag system.
If you don’t get them, the air bag
system won’t be there to help protect you in another
crash.
A new system will include air bag modules
and possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
0
e
Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module, which records information about
the frontal air bag system. The module records
information about the readiness
of the system, when
the sensors are activated and driver’s safety belt
usage at deployment.
Let only qualified technicians work on your air
bag systems. Improper service can mean that an
air bag system won’t work properly. See your dealer
for service.
NOTICE:
If you damage the covering for the driver’s or the
right front passenger’s air bag, or the air bag
covering on the driver’s and right front
passenger’s seatback, the bag may not work
properly. You may have to replace the air bag
module in the steering wheel, both the air bag
module and the instrument panel for the right
front passenger’s
air bag, or both the air bag
module and seatback for the driver’s and right
front passenger’s side impact air bag.
Do not
open or break the air bag coverings.
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