Page 38 of 387
Every time infants and young children ride in vehicles,
they should have the protection provided by appropriate
restraints. Young children should not use the vehicle’s
adult safety belts alone, unless there
is no other choice.
Instead, they need to use a child restraint. People should never hold a baby in their arms
while riding in a vehicle.
A baby doesn’t weigh
much
-- until a crash. During a crash a baby
will become
so heavy it is not possible to hold
it. For example, in a crash at only 25 mph
(40 km/h), a 12-lb.
(5.5 kg) baby will suddenly
become a 240-lb.
(1 10 kg) force on a person’s
arms.
A baby should be secured in an
appropriate restraint.
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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 outstanding protection for adults
and older children, 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.
Q: What are the different types of add-on child
restraints?
A: Add-on child restraints, which are purchased by the
vehicle’s owner, are available in four basic types.
Selection
of a particular restraint should take
into consideration not only the child’s weight, height
and age but also whether or not the restraint will
be compatible with the motor vehicle in which it will
be used.
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For most basic types of child restraints, there are
many different models available. When purchasing a
child restraint, be sure it is designed to be used
in a motor vehicle.
If it is, the restraint will have a
label saying that it meets federal motor vehicle
safety standards.
The restraint manufacturer’s instructions that come
with the restraint state the weight and height
limitations for a particular child restraint. In addition,
there are many kinds of restraints available for
child
1 with special needs.
Newborn infants need complete support,
including support for the head and neck. This
is necessary because a newborn infant’s neck
is weak and its head weighs
so much
c~mparpd with the rest nf its body. In a crash?
an infant in a rear-facing seat settles into the
restraint,
so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest part of an
infant’s body, the back and shoulders. Infants
always should be secured in appropriate infant
restraints. The body structure of
a young child is quite
unlike that
of an adult or older child, for whom
the safety belts are designed.
A young child’s
hip bones are still
so small that the vehicle’s
regular safety belt may not remain low on the
hip bones, as
it should. Instead, it may settle
up around the child’s abdomen. In a crash, the
belt would apply force on a body area that’s unprotected by any bony structure. This alone
could cause serious or fatal injuries. Young children always should be secured
in
appropriate child restraints.
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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 fit
of the vehicle’s safety belt system. Some
booster seats have a shoulder belt positioner, and
A booster seat can also help a child to see out the
window.
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Q: How do child restraints work?
A: A child restraint system is any device designed for
use in a motor vehicle to restrain, seat, or position
children.
A built-in child restraint system is a
permanent part
of the motor vehicle. An add-on
child restraint system is a portable one, which
is purchased by the vehicle’s owner.
For many years, add-on child restraints have used
the adult belt system in the vehicle. To help
reduce the chance of injury, the child also has to be
secured within the restraint. The vehicle’s belt
system secures the add-on child restraint in the
vehicle, and the add-on child restraint’s harness
system holds the child in place within the restraint.
One system, the three-point harness, has straps
that come down over each of the infant’s shoulders
and buckle together at the crotch. The five-point
harness system has two shoulder straps, two
hip straps and a crotch strap. A shield may take the
place of hip straps. A T-shaped shield has
shoulder straps that are attached to a flat pad which
rests low against the child’s body.
A shelf- or
armrest-type shield has straps that are attached to
a wide, shelf-like shield that swings up or to
the side. 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. When securing an add-on child restraint, refer
to the instructions that come with the restraint which may
be on the restraint itself or in a booklet, or both, and
to this manual. The child restraint instructions are
important,
so if they are not available, obtain a
replacement copy from the manufacturer.
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I I
If a LATCHty child restraint isn’t attached to
its anchorage- points, the restraint won’t be
able to protect a child sitting there. In a crash,
the child could be seriously injured or killed. Make sure that a LATCH-type child restraint
is
properly installed using the anchorage points,
or use the vehicle’s safety belts to secure the
restraint. See “Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH System’’
or “Securing
a Child Restraint
in a Rear Seat Position” in
the Index for information on how to secure a
child restraint
in your vehicle.
With this system, use the
LATCH system instead of the
vehicle’s safety belts to secure a child restraint.
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Securing a Child Restraint Designed
for the LATCH System
1. Find the anchors for the seating position you want
to use, where the bottom of the seatback meets the
back of the seat cushion.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Attach the anchor points on the child restraint to the
anchors in the vehicle. The child restraint
instructions will show you how.
4. If the child restraint is forward-facing, attach the top
strap to the top strap anchor. See
Top Strap on
page
1-38. Tighten the top strap according to
the child restraint instructions.
5. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions
to be sure it is secure.
TO remove the child restraint, simply unhook the
top
strap from the top tether anchor and then disconnect the
anchor points.
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Seat Position
i
If your child restraint is equipped with the LATCH
system, see
Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LA TCH System) on page
1-40.
You’ll be using the lap-shoulder belt. See Top Strap on
page 1-38 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.
1. Put the restraint on the seat.
2. 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.
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4.
5.
To tighten the belt, pull up on the shoulder belt
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.
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.
Securing a Child Restraint in the
Right Front Seat Position
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