Page 49 of 402
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine On convertible models, the safety belt also locks if you
pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder 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.
To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
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Page 50 of 402
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Ch en
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
' A 4UTION: I I
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 402

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine ‘ 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.
I 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 402
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A booster seat (F, G) is designed for children who
are about
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 402

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:
’ &% 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
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.
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 402
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Securing a Child Restraint in a
Rear Seat Position
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.
2.
Put the restraint on the seat.
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.
3. 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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Page 60 of 402
Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 5.
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.
6.
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.
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.
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Page 61 of 402

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Securing a Child Restraint in the Right
Front Seat Position
Your vehicle has a right front passenger air bag. Never
put a rear-facing child restraint in this seat. Here’s why:
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
rearfacing child restraint would be very close to
the inflating air bag. Always secure a rear-facing
child restraint
in the rear seat.
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. Because your vehicle has a right front passenger air
bag, always move the seat as far back as it will go
before securing a forward-facing child restraint.
(See “Seats” in the Index.)
2. Put the restraint on the seat.
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.
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