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The lap part of the belt should be worn low and snug on
the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies
force to the strong pelvic bones. And you'd be less
likely to slide under the lap belt. If you slid under it, the
belt would apply force at your abdomen. This could
cause serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt
should go over the shoulder and across the chest.
These parts of the body are best able to take belt
restraining forces.
The safety belt locks if there's a sudden stop or a crash.
The safety belt also locks if you pull the belt very
quickly out of the retractor.
CAUTION:
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.
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To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides
for Children and Small Adults
(4-Door Models)
Four-door models have rear shoulder belt comfort
guides. This feature will provide added safety belt
comfort for children who have outgrown child restraints
and for small adults. When installed on a shoulder belt,
the comfort guide pulls the belt away from the neck
and head.
There is one guide for each outside passenger position in
the rear seat. To provide added safety belt comfort for
children who have outgrown child restraints and for
smaller adults, the comfort guides may be installed on
the shoulder belts. Here's how to install a comfort guide
and use the safety belt:
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1. Pull the elastic cord out from between the edge of
the seatback and the interior body to remove the
guide from its storage clip.2. Slide the guide under and past the belt. The elastic
cord must be under the belt. Then, place the guide
over the belt, and insert the two edges of the belt into
the slots of the guide.
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3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted and it lies flat.
The elastic cord must be under the belt and the
guide on top.4. Buckle, position and release the safety belt as
described in ªRear Seat Outside Passenger Positionsº
earlier in this section. Make sure that the shoulder
belt crosses the shoulder.
To remove and store the comfort guides, squeeze the belt
edges together so that you can take them out from the
guides. Pull the guide upward to expose its storage clip,
and then slide the guide onto the clip. Rotate the guide and
clip inward and in between the seatback and the interior
body, leaving only the loop of elastic cord exposed.
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Center Rear Passenger Position
(4-Door Models)Lap Belt
When you sit in the center rear seating position, you
have a lap safety belt which has a retractor.
1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don't let it get twisted.
2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
3. Feed the lap belt into the retractor to tighten it.
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4. Position and release it the same way as the lap part
of a lap-shoulder belt.
If the belt isn't long enough, see ªSafety Belt
Extenderº 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.
Children
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
CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder belts offer
the best protection for adults, 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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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 frontal 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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A booster seat (F) is designed for children who are
about 40 to 60 lbs., or even up to 80 lbs.
(18 to 27 kg, or even up to 36 kg), and about four
to eight years of age. A booster seat is 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.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.