Page 49 of 380
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Center Passenger Position Lap Belt
When you sit in the center seating position, you have a
lap safety belt, which has no retractor. To make the belt
longer, tilt
the latch plate and pull it along the belt.
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Page 50 of 380

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Children
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. 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.
Smaller Children and Babies
I A CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to, an
air bag when
it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder belts offer
the best protection for adults and older children,
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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Page 51 of 380

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine I
f
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r
r
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. 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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Page 56 of 380
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A booster seat (F, G) is designed for children who are
abut 40 to 60 lbs. (18 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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Page 57 of 380

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. Here‘s why:
A CAUTION:
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. 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.
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.
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Page 59 of 380
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine r
i-
f
r
I
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Outside Seat Position
n
You’ll be using the lap-shoulder belt. See the earlier part
about the
top strap if the child restraint has one. Be sure
to
follow the instructions that came with the child
restraint. Secure the child
in the child restraint when and
as the instructions say.
1. Put the restraint on the seat.
2. 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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I
Page 60 of 380
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 3. 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.
4. To tighten the belt, pull up on the shoulder belt while
you push down on the child restraint. If you're using
a forward-facing child restraint, you may find it
helpful to use your knee to push down on the child
restraint as
you tighten the belt.
directions to be sure it
is secure.
5. 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.
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Page 61 of 380
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Securing a Child Restraint in the Center
Rear Seat Position
You’ll be using the lap belt. Be sure to follow the
instructions that came with the child restraint. Secure
the child in the child restraint when and as the
instructions
say.
See the earlier part about the top strap if the child
restraint has one.
I. Make the belt as long as possible by tilting the latch
plate and pulling
it along the belt.
2. Put the restraint on the seat.
3. Run the vehicle’s safety belt through or around the
restraint. The child restraint instructions will show
you
how.
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