2003 Oldsmobile Bravada belt

5. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of
the retractor
to set the lock.
6. 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.
7. 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.
1 -44

Here are the most important things to know about the
air bag systems:
You can be severely
il , Ired or killed in a crash
if you aren’t wearing your safety belt
- even if
you have air bags. Wearing your safety belt
during a crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things inside the vehicle or being
ejected from
it. Air bags are designed to work
with safety belts but don’t replace them.
Frontal air bags for the driver and right front
passenger are designed to deploy only
in
moderate to severe frontal and near frontal
crashes. They aren’t designed to inflate at all in
rollover, rear or low-speed frontal crashes, or
in
many side crashes. And, for some unrestrained
occupants, frontal air bags may provide less protection in frontal crashes than more forceful
air bags have provided
in the past.
CAUTION: (Continued) The side impact air bags for the driver and
right front passenger are designed to inflate
only
in moderate to severe crashes where
something hits the side of your vehicle. They
aren’t designed to inflate
in frontal, in rollover
or
in rear crashes.
Everyone
in your vehicle should wear a safety
belt properly
- whether or not there’s an air
bag for that person.
1 -47

Both .. Jntal and -.-- irn,,ct air bags in..-te
with great force, faster than the blink of an
eye. If you’re too close to an inflating air bag,
as you would be if you were leaning forward, it
could seriously injure you. Safety belts help
keep you in position for air bag inflation before
and during
a crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with frontal air bags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible while still
maintaining control of the vehicle. Front
~ occupants should not lean on or sleep against
the door.
Anyone who is up against, or very close to,
any air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder
CAUTION: (Continued)
I
r __._ s o - -.le --st pro--:tic.. 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.
To read how,
see the part of this manual called “Older
Children” or “Infants and Young Children”.
There
is an air bag
readiness light on the
instrument panel cluster,
which shows the air
bag symbol.
The system checks the air bag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you
if there is an electrical
problem. See
Air Bag Readiness Light on page 3-37
for more information.
1-48

In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
For frontal air bags, inflation is determined by the angle
of the impact and how quickly the vehicle slows down
in frontal and near-frontal impacts. For side impact
air bags, inflation is determined by the location and severity of the impact.
The air bag system is designed
to work properly under
a wide range of conditions, including off-road usage.
Observe safe driving speeds, especially on rough
terrain. As always, wear your safety belt. See
Operating
Your All-Wheel-Drive Vehicle
Off Paved Roads on
page
4-15 for tips on off-road driving.
What Makes an Air Bag Inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. For
both frontal and side impact air bags, the sensing
system triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which
inflates the air bag. The inflator, the air bag and
related hardware are all part of the air bag modules.
Frontal air bag modules are located inside the steering
wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles with side
impact air bags, the air bag modules are located in the
seatback closest
to the driver’s and/or right front
passenger’s door.
How Does an Air Bag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. In moderate
to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside
of the vehicle. The air bag supplements the protection
provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper
body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But the
frontal air bags would not help you in many types
of collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts, and many
side impacts, primarily because an occupant’s motion
is not toward the air bag. Side impact air bags would not
help you in many types of collisions, including frontal
or near frontal collisions, rollovers, and rear impacts,
primarily because an occupant’s motion is not toward
those air bags. Air bags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts, and
then only in moderate
to severe frontal or near-frontal
collisions for the driver’s and right front passenger’s
frontal air bags, and only in moderate
to severe
side collisions for vehicles with a driver’s and right front
passenger’s side impact air bag.
1-52

In many crashes severe enough to inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from the right front passenger air bag.
Air bags are designed to inflate only once. After an
air bag inflates, you’ll need some new parts for
your air bag system. If you don’t get them, the air
bag system won’t be there to help protect you
in another crash. A new system will include air bag
modules and possibly other parts. The service
manual for your vehicle covers the need to replace
other parts.
Your vehicle is equipped with an electronic frontal
sensor, which helps the sensing system distinguish
between a moderate frontal impact and a more
severe frontal impact. Your vehicle is also equipped
with a crash sensing and diagnostic module,
which records information about the frontal air bag
system. The module records information about
the readiness of the system, when the system
commands air bag inflation and driver’s safety belt
usage at deployment. The module also records
speed, engine
RPM, brake and throttle data.
Let only qualified technicians work on your air bag
systems. Improper service can mean that an air
bag system won’t work properly. See your dealer for
service.
Notice: If you damage the covering for the driver’s
or the right front passenger’s air bag, or the air
bag covering on the driver’s and right front
passenger’s seatback, the bag may not work
properly. You may have to replace the air bag
module in the steering wheel, both the air bag
module and the instrument panel for the right front
passenger’s air bag, or both the air bag module
and seatback for the driver’s and right front passenger’s side impact air bag.
Do not open or
break the air bag coverings.
1-54

Restraint System Check
Checking Your Restraint Systems
Now and then, make sure the safety belt reminder light
and all your belts, buckles, latch plates, retractors
and anchorages are working properly. Look for any other
loose or damaged safety belt system parts. If you see
anything that might keep a safety belt system from doing its job, have it repaired.
Torn or frayed safety belts may not protect you in a
crash. They can rip apart under impact forces.
If a belt
is torn or frayed, get a new one right away.
Also look for any opened or broken air bag covers, and
have them repaired or replaced. (The air bag system
does
not need regular maintenance.)
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash
A crash can damage the restraint systems in
your vehicle.
A damaged restraint system may
not properly protect the person using it,
resulting in serious injury or even death in a
crash.
To help make sure your restraint
systems are working properly after a crash.
have them inspected and any necessary
replacements made as soon as possible.
If you’ve had a crash, do you need new belts or LATCH
system parts?
After a very minor collision, nothing may be necessary.
But
if the belts were stretched, as they would be if
worn during a more severe crash, then you need
new parts.
1-56

If the LATCH system was being used during a more
severe crash, you may need new LATCH system parts.
If belts are cut or damaged, replace them. Collision
damage
also may mean you will need to have LATCH
system, safety belt or seat parts repaired or replaced. New parts and repairs may
be necessary even
if the
belt or LATCH system wasn’t being used at the time
of
the collision.
if an air bag inflates, you’ll need to replace air bag
system parts. See the part on the air bag system earlier
in this section.
1-57

Doors and Locks
Door Locks
There are several ways to lock and unlock your vehicle.
You can use the remote keyless entry system.
You can use your key to unlock your door from the
outside.
V AUTION:
Unlocked doors can be dangerous.
Passengers - especially children - can
easily open the doors and fall out of a moving vehicle. When a door is locked, the
handle won’t open
it. You increase the
chance of being thrown out of the vehicle
in a crash if the doors aren’t locked. So,
wear safety belts properly and lock the
doors whenever you drive.
vehicles may be unable to get out.
A child
can be overcome by extreme heat and can
suffer permanent injuries or even death
from heat stroke. Always lock your vehicle
whenever you leave
it.
unlocked door when you slow down or
stop your vehicle. Locking your doors can
help prevent this from happening.
Young children who get into unlocked
Outsiders can easily enter through an
r
.
You can lock or unlock the door from the inside by
sliding the manual lever forward or rearward. When the
door
is unlocked, you can see a red area on the
lever.
The manual lever on each door works only that
door’s lock.
2-8