1998 CADILLAC DEVILLE Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Children Smaller Children and Babies
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! That includes
infants and all children smaller than adult size. Neither
the distance traveled nor the age and size
of the traveler
changes the need, for everyone, to use safety restraints.
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.
b CAUTION:
I
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. This is true even though your vehicle
has reduced-force frontal air bags. Air bags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer the best protection for
adults, but not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its
air
bag system is designed for them. Young children
and infants need the protection that a child
restraint system can provide. Always secure
children properly in your vehicle.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine I A AUTION:
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.
Infants need complete support, including support for the
head and neck.
This is necessary because an infant’s neck
is weak and its head weighs so much compared with the
rest of its body.
In a crash, an infant in a rear-facing
restraint settles into the restraint,
so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest part of the infant’s body,
the back and shoulders.
A baby should be secured in an
appropriate infant restraint. This is so important that many
hospitals today won’t release a newborn infant to its
parents unless there is an infant restraint available for the
baby’s first
trip in a motor vehicle.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine CAUTION: (Continued) -
at only 25 mph (40 km/h), a 12-lb. (5.5 kg) baby
will suddenly become a 240-1b. (110
kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
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)
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Child Restraints
Every time infants and young children ride in
vehicles, they should have protection provided by
appropriate restraints.
e.' what are the different types of add-on
A: Add-on child restraints: are available in four basic
types. When selecting
a child restraint, take into
consideration not
only the child's weight and si'ze,
.but
also whether or not the restraint will be
compatible with the motor vehicle
in which it will
be used.
-
child restraints?
An infant car bed (A) is a special bed made for use
in
a motor vehicle. It's ai infant restraint system
designed to restrain or position a child on
a
continuous flat surface. With an infant car bed,
make sure that the infant's head rests toward the
center
of the vehicle.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A rear-facing infant restraint (B) positions an
infant to face the rear
of the vehicle. Rear-facing
infant restraints are designed for infants of up to
about
20 lbs. (9 kg) and about one year of age. This
type
of restraint faces the rear so that the infant’s
head, neck and body can have the support they
need in
a crash. Some infant seats come in two
parts
-- the base stays secured in the vehicle and
the seat part is removable.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A forward-facing child restraint (C-E) positions a
child upright to face forward
in the vehicle. These
forward-facing restraints
are designed to help
protect children who are from 20 to
40 lbs.
(9 to 18 kg) and about 26 to 40 inches
(66 to 102 cm) in height, or up to around four
years of age. One type, a convertible restraint, is
designed to be used either as a rear-facing infant
seat or a forward-facing child seat.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine L
A booster seat (F, G) is designed for children who
are about 40 to 60 lbs. (1 8 to 27 kg) and about four
to eight years of age. It’s designed to improve the
fit of the vehicle’s safety belt system. Booster seats
with shields use lap-only belts; however, booster
seats without shields use lap-shoulder belts.
Booster seats can also help
a child to see out
the window.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine When choosing a child restraint, 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. Both the owner’s
manual and the child restraint instructions are important,
so if either one of these is not available, obtain a
replacement copy from the manufacturer.
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.
Hc ’s why:
A CAUTION:
-
A child in a rearfacing child restraint can be
seriously injured if the right front passenger’s
air bag inflates even though your vehicle has
reduced-force frontal air bags. This is because
the back of the rearfacing child restraint would
be very close to the inflating air bag. Always
secure
a rearfacing child restraint in a rear seat.
You may secure a forward-facing child restraint
in the right front seat, but before you do, always
move the front passenger seat as far back as it
will go. It’s better to secure the child restraint in
a rear seat.
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