1998 Mercury Villager child lock

Using the Automatic Locking Mode Retractor to Secure
a Child Safety Seat
Your vehicle is equipped with a dual locking mode retractor on
the shoulder belt portion of the combination lap/shoulder safety
belt for the front passenger seat and rear outer seats. The
automatic locking modemust be usedwhen installing a child
seat or infant carrier in the front passenger seat or rear outer seats.
To install a child safety seat or infant carrier, follow these steps:
1. Position the child seat or infant carrier in the vehicle seat. If you
are using the moveable third row seat in the third row
position, the passenger side second row bucket seat, or the
front passenger seat, slide the seat to the rearmost position.
2. Follow the child seat or infant carrier manufacturer's
instructions. Route the safety belt through the child seat or
infant carrier and insert the safety belt tongue into the buckle
until you hear and feel the latch engage. Be sure to follow
the child safety seat manufacturer's instructions for belt
routing. When using the seating position near the sliding door
on the two-passenger bench seat, be sure that the single
window tongue is attached to the auxillary buckle on the side
of the seat.
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3. Pull on the belt until all of the stored belt is out of the retractor
and a click is heard.
4. Allow the belt to retract. A clicking sound will be heard as the
belt retracts. This indicates that the retractor is in the
automatic locking mode.
Routing the safety belt tongue through the child seat (captain's chair shown)
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6. Before placing the child in the child seat or infant carrier, use
force to tilt the seat from side to side, and tug it forward to
make sure that the seat is securely held in place.
7. Check that the retractor is in the automatic locking mode.
Try to pull more belt out of the retractor. If you cannot, the belt
is in the automatic locking mode.
8. Check to make sure the child seat or infant carrier is properly
secured prior to each use. If the safety belt is not locked,
repeat steps 3 through 6.
NOTE: When the lap/shoulder belt is unbuckled and allowed
to retract completely, the retractor will switch to the
vehicle sensitive (emergency) locking mode.
Testing the security of the child seat
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The automatic locking mode is activated whenever all of the belt
webbing is pulled out of the retractor.
While in this mode, the belt will retract or tighten but cannot be
pulled back out to obtain more length. To disengage the
automatic locking mode, unbuckle the belt and allow the webbing
to retract fully.
Attaching Safety Seats With Tether Straps
Some manufacturers make safety seats that include a tether strap
that goes over the back of the vehicle seat and attaches to an
anchoring point. Other manufacturers offer the tether strap as an
accessory. Contact the manufacturer of your child safety seat
for information about ordering a tether strap.
All vehicles built for sale in Canada include tether anchor
hardware for use with Canadian child safety seats. The tether
anchor hardware is located in the tire changing tool kit. Additional
tether anchor hardware can be obtained at no charge from any
Ford or Lincoln-Mercury dealer.
Vehicles built for sale in the USAdo notinclude tether anchor
hardware, but it can be obtained at no charge from any Ford or
Lincoln-Mercury dealer (Part number F3XY-12613D20-A).
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Tethering to lap/shoulder belt tongue
To attach a tether strap to a lap/shoulder belt:
1. Route the tether strap under the headrest and between the
head restraint supports.
2. Hook the tether strap hook into the large hole at the end of the
tongue of the lap/shoulder belt directly behind the child seat
position.
3. Adjust the tether strap length until the hook is about one foot
behind the seatback.
4. Pull the shoulder belt until all of the belt is fully extended and
a click is heard. At this time the belt is in automatic locking
mode (child restraint mode.)
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5. Let the retractor wind up the slack from the lap/shoulder
belt. A clicking sound should be heard as the belt retracts,
indicating that the retractor is in automatic locking mode.
Tighten the tether strap to remove any slack.
6. Before placing a child in the child restraint, use force to tilt the
child restraint from side to side and tug it forward to make
sure it is securely held in place.
7. Check that the retractor is in automatic locking mode by
trying to pull more belt out of the retractor. If you cannot pull
any more belt webbing out of the retractor, the belt is in
automatic locking mode.
8. Check to make sure the child restraint is properly secured
prior to each use. If the belt is not locked, repeat steps 4
through 7.
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WARNING
The second row seatback must be fully locked before
operating the child restraint system. Check the position of
the seatback release lever.
Second row bench built-in child seats
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Built-In Child Seat Retractors
The retractor will switch from the emergency locking mode to the
automatic locking mode when the right shoulder belt is pulled
all the way out. The retractor will switch back to emergency locking
mode when the belts are unbuckled and the shoulder belts
retract completely.
The automatic locking mode must be used to hold small children
in position, particularly sleeping children and those who may
try to squirm out of the belts. The emergency locking mode is used
while buckling the belts.
Always adjust the lap and shoulder harness belts provided with
this child seat snugly around your child.
WARNING
Failure to follow all of the instructions on the use of this
child restraint system can result in your child striking
the vehicle's interior during a sudden stop or crash.
How to Use the Built-In Child Seat
Read the following procedures and all of the labels on the
built-in child seat before using the seat.
WARNING
Never use the Built-In Child Seat as a booster cushion
with the adult safety belts. A child using the adult belts
could slide forward and out from under the safety belts.
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