1999 FORD WINDSTAR Owners Manual

Contact the manufacturer of your child safety seat for information about
ordering a tether strap.
Tether anchorage hardware
Children should be placed in the rear in an appropriate child
safety seat that is properly secured to the vehicle.
Rear-facing infant seats must always be secured in the rear seat.
In vehicles without a rear seat, a rear-facing infant seat should
be secured in the front seat only if your vehicle does not have a
passenger side air bag or your vehicle is equipped with a passenger air
bag deactivate switch and the switch is turned to ªOFF.º
When using forward-facing child safety seats in vehicles with
only two seating positions so the forward-facing child safety seat
cannot be placed in the rear of the vehicle, move the passenger seat as
far back from the instrument panel as possible.
Tether strap anchorage locations
have been provided in your vehicle.
The left side of the figure is the
front of the vehicle.
The tether can be attached directly to the rear of all passenger seating
except the front passenger seat equipped with power adjustment. The
front passenger seat with manual adjustment does have a tether anchor.
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Front passenger seating position
1. Position the child safety seat on
the passenger seat cushion.
2. Route the child safety seat tether
strap over the back of the seat.
3. Grasp the tether strap and
position it to the seat frame.
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4. Rotate the tether strap.
5. Clip the tether strap to the seat
frame.
If the tether strap is clipped
incorrectly (as shown) the child
safety seat may not be retained
properly in the event of a
collision.
6. Rotate the tether strap clip.
7. Refer to the instructions in this
section underInstalling child
safety seats in cinch tongue
combination lap and shoulder belt
seating positionsto secure the
child safety seat.
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139

8. Tighten the child safety seat
tether strap according to the
manufacturer's instructions.
Rear seating positions
Follow steps 1±8 as described above for the following available seats:
²2nd row bucket
²2nd row bench
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140

²3rd row bench
For additional important safety information on the proper use of
seatbelts, child seats and infant seats, please read the entireSeating
and safety restraintschapter in this owner's guide.
BUILT-IN CHILD SEATS
Built-in child safety seat (if equipped)
The rear seat may include a built-in child seat. This child seat conforms
to all Federal and local motor vehicle safety standards. Read the labels
located on the child seat cushion and shoulder belt for information on
the built-in child seat.
Use the built-in child seatonlyif the child is at least 1 year old, weighs
10±27 kg (22±60 lb) and the child's shoulders (top) are below the
shoulder harness slots in the built-in child seat.
Children not meeting these requirements should be secured in an
approved aftermarket seat. Refer toChild and infant or child safety
seatsin this chapter.
Built-in child seat retractors
The belts on the built-in child seat are equipped with a retractor that has
two types of locking modes.
Vehicle sensitive mode- the vehicle sensitive mode is the normal
retractor mode, allowing some movement of the shoulder belts and
locking in response to vehicle movement. For example, if the driver
brakes suddenly or turns a corner sharply, or the vehicle receives an
impact of 8 km/h (5 mph) or more, the combination safety belts will lock
to help reduce forward movement of the child.
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Automatic locking modeÐ in this mode, the shoulder belt is
automatically pre-locked to limit the child's movement in the seat. The
belt will still retract to remove any slack in the shoulder belts. The
automatic locking mode should be used if the child is sleeping or
attempting to get out of the seat.
The retractor will switch from the vehicle sensitive mode to the
automatic locking mode when the left hand shoulder belt is pulled all the
way out. The retractor will switch back to the vehicle sensitive mode
when the belts are unbuckled and the shoulder belts retract completely.
Frequently check the child seat's lap and shoulder harness belts for
correct placement and tightness. Use the child seat only if the harness
belts will stay snug when belts are placed into the lock mode with a child
in the seat. If belts do not remain snug, take the vehicle to the dealer for
child seat repair.
Always adjust the lap and shoulder harness belts provided with this child
seat snugly around your child.
Placing your child in the built-in child seat
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.
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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1. Ensure head restraint is in the
down position, then pull child seat
down completely. The child seat can
only be folded down when the head
restraint is in the down position.
The head restraint cannot be raised
when the child seat is folded down.
2. Read the information and
warnings on both sides of the child
seat cushion protector flap. Check
the child's size, weight and age to be
sure the child is not too small or too
large for the child seat. Then fold
the flap down onto the adult seat
cushion.
3. If connected, disconnect the chest clip and buckles.
4. Place the child on the child seat
and position the shoulder belts over
each shoulder.
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5. Insert the left and right safety
belt tongues into the left and right
slots of the crotch buckle. Verify
that the indicator window on each
tongue is green to ensure proper
safety belt connections.
6. Fasten the right and left chest
clip halves together and adjust the
clip to comfortably hold the
shoulder belts in place over the
child's chest.
The chest clip is designed to easily
pull apart in a collision. The clip
helps to keep belts snug on a
sleeping or squirming child.
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