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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 would 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 is a sudden stop or a crash,
or 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 t against your body.
To unlatch the belt, push the button on the buckle.
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Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides
Rear shoulder belt comfort guides may provide added
safety belt comfort for older children who have outgrown
booster seats and for some adults. When attached to a
shoulder belt, the comfort guide positions the belt away
from the neck and head.
There is one guide for each outside passenger position in
the rear seat. Here is how to attach the comfort guide to
the shoulder belt.
1. Slide the guide off of its storage clip located
between the interior body and the seatback.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.
3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted and it lies at.
The elastic cord must be under the belt and the
guide on top.
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{CAUTION:
A safety belt that is not properly worn may not
provide the protection needed in a crash. The
person wearing the belt could be seriously
injured. 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.
4. Buckle, position, and release the safety belt as
described inRear Seat Passengers on page 1-21.
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 of the
guides. Slide the guide back onto its storage clip located
between the interior body and the seatback.
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Safety Belt Pretensioners
Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners for the driver
and right front passenger. Although you cannot see them,
they are located on the retractor part of the safety belts.
They help the safety belts reduce a person’s forward
movement in a moderate to severe frontal, near frontal
or side crash or a rollover.
Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a
crash, you will need to get new ones, and probably other
new parts for your safety belt system. SeeReplacing
Restraint System Parts After a Crash on page 1-68.
Safety Belt Extender
If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you, you
should use it.
But if a safety belt is not long enough, your dealer will
order you an extender. It is free. When you go in to order
it, take the heaviest coat you will wear, so the extender
will be long enough for you. To help avoid personal injury,
do not let someone else use it, and use it only for the
seat it is made to t. The extender has been designed for
adults. Never use it for securing child seats. To wear it,
just attach it to the regular safety belt. For more
information, see the instruction sheet that comes
with the extender.
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Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown booster seats should
wear the vehicle’s safety belts.
Q:What is the proper way to wear safety belts?
A: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.
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{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same belt.
The belt can not properly spread the impact
forces. In a crash, the two children can be
crushed together and seriously injured. A belt
must be used by only one person at a time.
Q:What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder belt,
but the child is so small that the shoulder belt
is very close to the child’s face or neck?
A:If the child is sitting in a seat next to a window, move
the child toward the center of the vehicle. Also see
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides on page 1-24.If
the child is sitting in the center rear seat passenger
position, move the child toward the safety belt
buckle. In either case, be sure that the shoulder belt
still is on the child’s shoulder, so that in a crash the
child’s upper body would have the restraint the belts
provide.
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Page 35 of 434
{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here a child is sitting in a seat that has a
lap-shoulder belt, but the shoulder part is
behind the child. If the child wears the belt in
this way, in a crash the child might slide under
the belt. The belt’s force would then be applied
right on the child’s abdomen. That could cause
serious or fatal injuries.Wherever the child sits, the lap portion of the belt
should be worn low and snug on the hips, just touching
the child’s thighs. This applies belt force to the child’s
pelvic bones in a crash.
Infants and Young Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! This includes
infants and all other children. 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.
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.
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{CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to,
any airbag when it in ates can be seriously
injured or killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder belts
offer protection for adults and older children,
but not for young children and infants. Neither
the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its airbag
system is designed for them. Young children
and infants need the protection that a child
restraint system can provide.
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