1997 CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock
if you pull the belt across
you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt go back
slightly to unlock
it. Then pull the belt across you
more slowly.
2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate
to make sure it is secure. 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. 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.
3. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder
part.
1-28

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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,
or
if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
I
You can be seriously hurt if your snoulder 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.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for
Children and Small Adults
Rear shoulder belt comfort guides will provide added
safety belt comfort for children who have outgrown
child restraints and for
small adults. When installed on a
shoulder belt, the comfort guide pulls
the belt away
from the neck and head. There
is one guide for each outside passenger position in
the rear seat.
To provide added safety belt comfort for
children who have outgrown child restraints and for
smaller adults, the comfort guides may be installed
on
the shoulder belts. Here’s how to install a comfort guide
and use the safety belt:
1. Pull the elastic cord out from between the edge of
the seatback and the interior body to remove the
guide from its storage clip.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 2. Slide the guide under and past the belt. The elastic
cord must be under the belt. Then, place the guide
over the belt, and insert the two edges
of the belt into
the slots
of the guide.
3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted and it lies flat.
The elastic cord must be under
the belt and the
guide
on top.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 4. Buckle, position and release the safety belt as
described in “Rear Seat Outside Passenger Positions’’
earlier
in this section. Make sure that the shoulder
belt crosses the shoulder.
To remove and store the comfort guides, squeeze the belt
edges together
so that you can take them out from the
guides. Pull the guide upward to expose its storage clip,
and then slide the guide onto the clip. Rotate the guide and \
clip inward and in between the seatback and the interior
body, leaving
only the loop of elastic cord exposed.
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
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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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine r
CAUTION:
-
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.
I

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
Never put a rear-facing
child restraint in the front passenger seat. Here’s why:
4 CAUTION:
I
A child in a rear=facing chi1 straint can De
seriously injured if the right front passenger’s
air bag inflates. This
is because the back of a
rearfacing child restraint would be very close to
the inflating air bag. Always secure
a rear-facing
child restraint in the 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 the rear seat.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A child in a child restraint in the center front seat
can be badly injured by the right front passenger
air bag if it inflates. Never secure a child restraint
in the center front seat. It's always better to
secure a child restraint in the rear seat. You may,
however, secure a forward-facing child restraint
in the right front passenger seat, but only with
the seat moved all the way back.
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 Chevrolet dealer to put it in for you. If you
want to install an anchor yourself, your dealer can tell
you how to do it.
Canadian law requires that child restraints have a top
strap, and that the strap be anchored.