2003 CHEVROLET ASTRO CARGO VAN seats

If your vehicle has the
optional touring package,
your vehicle will have a
center console. To raise or
lower the center console,
press the button located
between the beverage
holders. Sit in the center
seating position only when
the console is in an upright
and locked position.
For details about headrests, see
Head Restraints on
page 1-5.
Bucket Seats
Your vehicle may have rear bucket seats with an
adjustment release bar located under the front of the
seats. These seats can be adjusted forward or rearward
with the release bar. Pull the release bar up to release
the seat bottom. Slide the seat where you want it
and then let go of the release bar. Then try to move the
seat with your body to make sure the seat is locked
into place.
1-12

Safety Belts
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety
belts properly. It also tells you some things you should
not do with safety belts.
{CAUTION:
Don't let anyone ride where he or she can't
wear a safety belt properly. If you are in a
crash and you're not wearing a safety belt,
your injuries can be much worse. You can hit
things inside the vehicle or be ejected from it.
You can be seriously injured or killed. In the
same crash, you might not be, if you are
buckled up. Always fasten your safety belt,
and check that your passengers' belts are
fastened properly too.
{CAUTION:
It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo
area, inside or outside of a vehicle. In a
collision, people riding in these areas are more
likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not
allow people to ride in any area of your vehicle
that is not equipped with seats and safety
belts. Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a
seat and using a safety belt properly.
Your vehicle has a light
that comes on as a
reminder to buckle up. See
Safety Belt Reminder
Light on page 3-26.
1-13

Q:If I'm a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should I wear safety belts?
A:You may be an excellent driver, but if you're in an
accident ± even one that isn't your fault ± you and
your passengers can be hurt. Being a good
driver doesn't protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within 25 miles (40 km) of
home. And the greatest number of serious injuries
and deaths occur at speeds of less than 40 mph
(65 km/h).
Safety belts are for everyone.
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special things to know about
safety belts and children. And there are different
rules for smaller children and babies. If a child will be
riding in your vehicle, see
Older Children on page 1-35orInfants and Young Children on page 1-38. Follow
those rules for everyone's protection.
First, you'll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We'll start with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver's restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here is how to wear
it properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat so you can sit up straight. To see
how, see ªSeatsº in the Index.
1-18

The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the
mother. When a safety belt is worn properly, it's more
likely that the fetus won't be hurt in a crash. For
pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective is wearing them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
To learn how to wear the right front passenger's safety
belt properly, seeDriver Position on page 1-18.
The right front passenger's safety belt works the same
way as the driver's safety belt Ð except for one
thing. If you ever pull the lap portion of the belt out all
the way, you will engage the child restraint locking
feature. If this happens, just let the belt go back all the
way and start again.
Center Passenger Position
Lap Belt
If your vehicle has rear bench seats, someone can sit in
the center positions.
1-27

Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for
Children and Small Adults
Your vehicle may have this feature already. If it doesn't,
you can get it from any GM dealer.
This feature will provide added safety belt comfort for
older children who have outgrown booster seats and for
small adults. When installed on a shoulder belt, the
comfort guide better positions the belt away from
the neck and head.
To provide added safety belt comfort for children who
have outgrown child restraints and booster seats 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:
1. Remove the guide from its storage clip on the side
of the seatback.
1-32

Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown booster seats 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.
Q:What is the proper way to wear safety belts?
A:If possible, an older child should wear a
lap-shoulder belt and get the additional restraint a
shoulder belt can provide. The shoulder belt
should not cross the face or neck. The lap belt
should ®t snugly below the hips, just touching the
top of the thighs. It should never be worn over
the abdomen, which could cause severe or even
fatal internal injuries in a crash.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear seat.
In a crash, children who are not buckled up can strike
other people who are buckled up, or can be thrown
out of the vehicle. Older children need to use safety
belts properly.
1-35

A forward-facing child seat (C-E) provides restraint for
the child's body with the harness and also sometimes
with surfaces such as T-shaped or shelf-like shields.A booster seat (F-G) is a child restraint designed to
improve the ®t of the vehicle's safety belt system.
Some booster seats have a shoulder belt positioner,
and some high-back booster seats have a ®ve-point
harness. A booster seat can also help a child to see out
the window.
1-45

Top Strap Anchor Location
If your vehicle is a cargo van, the anchoring point for a
top strap is located at the rear of the seat cushion
on the right front passsenger's seat spacer bar. Anchor
the top strap through the two slots.If your vehicle is a passenger van with rear seats, it is
recommended that you secure a child restraint with a top
strap only in the outboard positions of the second row.
Bucket Seats:An anchoring point is located below the
rear of the seat cushion on the spacer bar. Anchor
the top strap through the two slots on the bar.
Cargo Van Models
Passenger Van Bucket Seats
1-50