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4. After confirming that the belt is locked, grab the shoulder part of
the belt near the buckle and pull
up to remove any slack from the
lap part of the belt. Remember, if
the lap part of the belt is not tight,
the child seat will not be secure.
To remove slack, it may help to put weight on the child seat, or
push on the back of the seat, while
pulling up on the belt. 5. Push and pull the child seat
forward and from side to side to
verify that it is secure enough to stay upright during normal driving
maneuvers. If the child seat is not secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract fully, then repeat these
steps.
To deactivate the locking
mechanism and remove a childseat, unlatch the buckle, unroute
the seat belt, and let the belt fully
retract.
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Rear-Facing Child Seat Installation Tips
For proper protection, an infant must
ride in a reclined, or semi-reclined
position. To determine the proper
reclining angle, check with the baby's doctor or follow the seat maker's
recommendations.
To achieve the desired reclining angle, it may help to put a rolled up
towel under the toe of the child seat,
as shown.
When properly installed, a rear-
facing child seat may prevent the driver or a front-seat passenger from
moving the seat as far back as
recommended (see page 13). Or it
may prevent them from locking theseat-back in the desired upright
position (see page 14).
In either case, we recommend that
you place the child seat directly
behind the front passenger seat, move the front seat as far forward as
needed, and leave it unoccupied. Or
you may wish to get a smaller child seat that allows you to safely carry a
front passenger.
Additional Precautions for Infants
Never hold an infant on your lap.
If you are not wearing a seat belt
in a crash, you could be thrown
forward into the dashboard and crush the infant.
If you are wearing a seat belt, the
infant can be torn from your arms during a crash. For example, if
your car crashes into a parked
vehicle at 30 mph (48 km/h), a 20-lb (9 kg) infant will become a600-lb (275 kg) force, and you will
not be able to hold on.
Never put a seat belt over yourself
and an infant. During a crash, the
belt could press deep into the infant and cause very serious
injuries.
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If it is necessary to put a forward-
facing child seat in the front, move the vehicle seat as far to the rear as
possible, be sure the child seat is
firmly secured to the car, and thechild is properly strapped in the seat.
Child Seat Installation
The lap/shoulder belts in the back and front passenger seating positions
have a locking mechanism that must
be activated to secure a child seat.
The following pages provide instructions on how to secure a
forward-facing child seat with this
type of seat belt.
1. With the child seat in the desiredseating position, route the belt
through the child seat according
to the seat maker's instructions,
then insert the latch plate into the
buckle.
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Improperly placing a forward-
facing child seat in the front seat can result in serious injuryor death if the airbags inflate.
If you must place a forward-
facing child seat in front, move the vehicle seat as far back as
possible and properly restrain
the child.
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2. To activate the lockable retractor, slowly pull the shoulder part of the
belt all the way out until it stops,
then let the belt feed back into the
retractor (you might hear a clicking noise as the belt retracts). 3. After the belt has retracted, tug on
it. If the belt is locked, you will not
be able to pull it out. If you can pull
the belt out, it is not locked and
you will need to repeat these steps.
4. After confirming that the belt islocked, grab the shoulder part of
the belt near the buckle and pull up to remove any slack from the
lap part of the belt. Remember, if
the lap part of the belt is not tight,
the child seat will not be secure. It
may help to put weight on the child seat, or push on the back of
the seat, while pulling up on the
belt.
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5. Push and pull the child seat forward and from side to side to
verify that it is secure enough to stay upright during normal driving
maneuvers. If the child seat is not secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract fully, then repeat these
steps.
To deactivate the locking
mechanism in order to remove a
child seat, unlatch the buckle,
unroute the seat belt, and let the belt
fully retract.
Additional Precautions for Small
Children
Never hold a small child on your
lap. If you are not wearing a seat
belt in a crash, you could be
thrown forward into the dashboard and crush the child.
If you are wearing a seat belt, the
child can be torn from your arms
during a crash. For example, if
your car crashes into a parked
vehicle at 30 mph (48 km/h), a 30-lb (14 kg) child will become a
900-lb (410 kg) force, and you will
not be able to hold on.
Never put a seat belt over yourself
and a child. During a crash, the
belt could press deep into the child and cause very serious injuries.
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When a child reaches the recommended weight or height limit
for a forward-facing child seat, thechild should sit in one of the backseats and wear a lap/shoulder belt.
If a child is too short for the shoulder
part of the belt to properly fit, we recommend that the child use a
booster seat until the child is tall enough to use the seat belt without a
booster.
The following pages give instructions on how to check proper
seat belt fit, what kind of boosterseat to use if one is needed, and
important precautions for a child
who must sit in the front seat.
Checking Seat Belt Fit
To determine if a lap/shoulder belt properly fits a child, have the child
put on the seat belt. Follow the
instructions on page 16. Then check
how the belt fits.
Drive r an d Passenge r Safet y Allowing a larger child to sit
improperly in the front seat can
result in injury or death if the
airbags inflate.
If a larger child must sit in front,
make sure the child moves the
seat as far back as possible
and wears the seat belt properly.
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If the shoulder part of the belt rests
over the child's collarbone and
against the center of the chest, as shown, the child is large enough to
wear the seat belt.
However, if the belt touches orcrosses the child's neck, the child
needs to use a booster seat. Do not let a child wear a seat belt
across the neck. This could result in
serious neck injuries during a crash.
Do not let a child put the shoulder
part of a seat belt behind the back or under the arm. This could cause
very serious injuries during a crash. It also increases the chance that thechild will slide under the belt in a
crash and be injured.
Do not put any accessories on a seat
belt. Devices intended to improve
occupant comfort or reposition the
shoulder part of a seat belt, severely
compromise the protective capability
of the seat belt and increase the
chance of serious injury in a crash.
Two children should never use the
same seat belt. If they do, they could
be very seriously injured in a crash.
Using a Booster Seat
If a child needs a booster seat, we
recommend choosing a style that
allows the child to use the lap/ shoulder belt directly, without a
shield, as shown.
Whichever style you select, follow the booster seat maker's instructions.
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A child may continue using a booster seat until the tops of the ears are
even with the top of the seat-back. A
child of this height should be tall
enough to use the lap/shoulder belt
without a booster.
When Can a Larger Child Sit in Front
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport Canada recommend that all children
ages 12 and under be properly
restrained in a back seat.
The back seat is the safest place for a child of any age or size.
In addition, the passenger's airbag
poses serious risks to children. If the seat is too far forward, or the child's
head is thrown forward during a collision, or the child is unrestrainedor out of position, an inflating airbag
can kill or seriously injure the child. Of course, children vary widely. And
while age may be one indicator of
when a child can safely ride in the front, there are other important
factors you should consider.
Physical Size
Physically, a child must be large enough for the lap/shoulder belt to
properly fit over the hips, chest, and shoulder (see pages 16 and38). If
the seat belt does not fit properly,
the child should not sit in the front.
Maturity
To safely ride in front, a child must be able to follow the rules, including sitting properly and wearing the seat
belt properly throughout a ride. If you decide that a child can safely
ride up front, be sure to: Carefully read the owner's manual
and make sure you understand all seat belt instructions and all safety
information. Move the vehicle seat to the rear-
most position. Have the child sit up straight, back
against the seat, and feet on or
near the floor. Check that the child's seat belt is
properly positioned and secured. Supervise the child. Even mature
children sometimes need to be
reminded to fasten the seat belts or sit properly.
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