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1. 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.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.
5. To tighten the belt, pull its free end 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.
6. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
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To remove the child restraint, just unbuckle the vehicle's
safety belt. It will be ready to work for an adult or larger
child passenger.
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:
CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger's air bag inflates. This is because the
back of the rear
-facing child restraint would be
very close to the inflating air bag. Always secure
a rear
-facing child restraint in the rear seat.
Although a rear seat is a safer place, you can secure a
forward
-facing child restraint in the right front 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.
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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 ªSeatsº 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.
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.
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.
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5. Some vehicles have a child restraint locking feature
on the shoulder belt retractor. You can tell if your
vehicle has this feature by pulling the shoulder belt
all the way out of the retractor. Then, let the belt go
back a few inches, and try to pull the belt out again.
If you can't pull the belt out because it has locked,
it means the retractor has the child restraint locking
feature. If the belt doesn't lock and you can pull the
belt out of the retractor again, it means your vehicle
doesn't have the child restraint locking feature on the
shoulder belt retractor.
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If your vehicle has the child restraint locking
feature on the shoulder belt retractor, pull the
rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of the
retractor to set the lock.
To tighten the belt, feed the shoulder belt back
into the retractor while you push down on the
child restraint. You may find it helpful to use
your knee to push down on the child restraint as
you tighten the belt.
If your vehicle doesn't have the child restraint
locking feature on the shoulder belt retractor,
tighten the belt by pulling up on the shoulder belt
while you push down on the child restraint. You
may find it helpful to use your knee to push down
on the child restraint as you tighten the belt.
6. 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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Larger Children
Children who have outgrown child restraints should
wear the vehicle's safety belts.If you have the choice, a child should sit next to a
window so the child can wear a lap
-shoulder belt and
get the additional restraint a shoulder belt can provide.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear seat. But they need to use the
safety belts properly.
Children who aren't buckled up can be thrown out in
a crash.
Children who aren't buckled up can strike other
people who are.
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CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same belt.
The belt can't properly spread the impact forces.
In a crash, the two children can be crushed
together and seriously injured. A belt must be
used by only one person at a time.
Q:What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder belt,
but the child is so small that the shoulder belt is
very close to the child's face or neck?
A:Move the child toward the center of the vehicle, but
be sure that the shoulder belt still is on the child's
shoulder, so that in a crash the child's upper body
would have the restraint that belts provide. If the
child is sitting in a rear seat outside position, see
ªRear Safety Belt Comfort Guidesº in the Index.
If the child is so small that the shoulder belt is still
very close to the child's face or neck, you might
want to place the child in the center seat position,
the one that has only a lap belt.
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CAUTION:
Do not load your vehicle any heavier than the
GVWR, or either the maximum front or rear
GAWR. If you do, parts on your vehicle can
break, and it can change the way your vehicle
handles. These could cause you to lose control
and crash. Also, overloading can shorten the life
of your vehicle.
NOTICE:
Your warranty does not cover parts or
components that fail because of overloading.
If you put things inside your vehicle -- like suitcases,
tools, packages or anything else
-- they will go as fast as
the vehicle goes. If you have to stop or turn quickly, or
if there is a crash, they'll keep going.
CAUTION:
Things you put inside your vehicle can strike
and injure people in a sudden stop or turn, or in
a crash.
Put things in the trunk of your vehicle. In a
trunk, put them as far forward as you can.
Try to spread the weight evenly.
Never stack heavier things, like suitcases,
inside the vehicle so that some of them are
above the tops of the seats.
Don't leave an unsecured child restraint in
your vehicle.
When you carry something inside the
vehicle, secure it whenever you can.
Don't leave a seat folded down unless you
need to.
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