2007 CHEVROLET AVALANCHE Owners Manual

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 installed on a shoulder belt, the
comfort guide positions the belt away from
the neck and head.
There is one guide for each rear passenger
position in the rear seat. Here is how to
install a comfort guide to the shoulder belt:
1. Remove the guide from its storage pocket
on the side of the seatback for the outboard
positions. For the center position, remove
the guide from its storage pocket on the side
of the seatback.
Outboard Position shown
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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 37. Make sure that the shoulder
belt crosses the shoulder.
To remove and store the comfort guide, squeeze
the belt edges together so that you can take
them out of the guide. Slide the guide into
its storage pocket on the side of 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 part of the safety belt
assembly. They help tighten the safety belts during
the early stages of a moderate to severe frontal
or near frontal crash if the threshold conditions
for pretensioner activation are met. And, if
your vehicle has side impact rollover airbags,
safety belt pretensioners can help tighten
the safety belts in a side crash or a rollover event.
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 89.
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. 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.
According to accident statistics, children are
safer when properly restrained in the rear seat
positions than in the front seating positions.
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 cannot 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. If the child is sitting in the
center rear seat passenger position, move
the child toward the safety belt buckle.
Also seeRear Safety Belt Comfort Guides
on page 41. 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 that belts provide.
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{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.
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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.
{CAUTION:
Children can be seriously injured or
strangled if a shoulder belt is wrapped
around their neck and the safety belt
continues to tighten. Never leave children
unattended in a vehicle and never allow
children to play with the safety belts.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.
{CAUTION:
People should never hold a baby in their
arms while riding in a vehicle. A baby
does not 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 (110 kg) force
on a person’s arms. A baby should be
secured in an appropriate restraint.
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