2007 CHRYSLER ASPEN belt

However, if you haven’t healed significantly within a
few days, or if you have any blistering, see your doctor
immediately. As the airbags deflate you may see some
smoke-like particles. The particles are a normal by-
product of the process that generates the nontoxic gas
used for airbag inflation. These airborne particles may
irritate the skin, eyes, nose, or throat. If you have skin
or eye irritation, rinse the area with cool water. For
nose or throat irritation, move to fresh air. If the
irritation continues, see your doctor. If these particles
settle on your clothing, follow the garment manufac-
turer’s instructions for cleaning.
•It is not advisable to drive your vehicle after the
airbags have deployed. If you are involved in another
collision, the airbags will not be in place to protect you.
WARNING!
Deployed airbags and seat belt pretensioners cannot
protect you in another collision. Have the airbags,
seat belt pretensioners, and the front passenger seat
belt retractor assembly, replaced by an authorized
dealer as soon as possible.
58 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

may be released for incorporation in aggregate crash
databases, such as those maintained by the US govern-
ment and various states. Data of a potentially sensitive
nature, such as would identify a particular driver, ve-
hicle, or crash, will be treated confidentially. Confidential
data will not be disclosed by DaimlerChrysler Corpora-
tion to any third party except when:
1. Used for research purposes, such as to match data
with a particular crash record in an aggregate database,
provided confidentiality of personal data is thereafter
preserved
2. Used in defense of litigation involving a
DaimlerChrysler Corporation product
3. Requested by police under a legal warrant
4. Otherwise required by lawData Parameters that May Be Recorded:
•Diagnostic trouble code(s) and warning lamp status
for electronically-controlled safety systems, including
the airbag system
•Airbag disable lamp status (if equipped)
•Timeof airbag deployment (in terms of ignition
cycles and vehicle mileage)
•Airbag deployment level (if applicable)
•Seatbelt status
•Brake status (service and parking brakes)
•Accelerator status (including vehicle speed)
•Engine control status (including engine speed)
•Cruise control status
•Traction/stability control status
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 61
2

Child Restraint
Everyone in your vehicle needs to be buckled up all the
time - babies and children, too. Every state in the United
States and all Canadian provinces require that small
children ride in proper restraint systems. This is the law,
and you can be prosecuted for ignoring it. Children 12
years and under should ride properly buckled up in a
rear seat, if available. According to crash statistics, chil-
dren are safer when properly restrained in the rear seats
rather than in the front.
There are different sizes and types of restraints for
children from newborn size to the child almost large
enough for an adult seat belt. Always check the child seat
owner’s manual to ensure you have the right seat for
your child. Use the restraint that is correct for your child:
Infants and Small Children
•
This vehicle is not capable of accommodating the
installation of a car bed used for carrying newbornbabies at the right front passenger seat position. If a car
bed must be used to transport a newborn baby, the car
bed must be installed in the second seating row only.
•Safety experts recommend that children ride
rearward-facing in the vehicle until they are at least
one year old and weigh at least 20 lbs (9 kg). Two types
of child restraints can be used rearward facing: infant
carriers andconvertiblechild seats.
•The infant carrier is only used rearward-facing in the
vehicle. It is recommended for children who weigh up
to about 20 lbs (9 kg).Convertiblechild seats can be
used either rearward-facing or forward-facing in the
vehicle. Convertible child seats often have a higher
weight limit in the rearward-facing direction than
infant carriers do, so they can be used rearward-facing
by children who weigh more than 20 lbs (9 kg) but are
less than one year old. Both types of child restraints are
held in the vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt or the
62 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

LATCH child restraint anchorage system. (See the
LATCH - Child Seat Anchorage System section.)
•Rearward-facing child seats mustNEVERbe used in
the front seat of a vehicle with a front passenger
airbag. An airbag deployment could cause severe
injury or death to infants in this position.
Older Children and Child Restraints
Children who weigh more than 20 lbs (9 kg) and who are
older than one year can ride forward-facing in the
vehicle. Forward-facing child seats and convertible child
seats used in the forward-facing direction are for children
who weigh 20 to 40 lbs (9 to 18 kg) and who are older
than one year. These child seats are also held in the
vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt or the LATCH child
restraint anchorage system. (See the LATCH - Child Seat
Anchorage System Section.)
The belt-positioning booster seat is for children weighing
more than 40 lbs (18 kg), but who are still too small to fitthe vehicle’s seat belts properly. If the child cannot sit
with knees bent over the vehicle’s seat cushion while the
child’s back is against the seat back, they should use a
belt-positioning booster seat. The child and belt-
positioning booster seat are held in the vehicle by the
lap/shoulder belt.
Children Too Large for Booster Seats
Children who are large enough to wear the shoulder belt
comfortably, and whose legs are long enough to bend
over the front of the seat when their back is against the
seat back should use the lap/shoulder belt in a rear seat.
•Make sure that the child is upright in the seat.
•The lap portion should be low on the hips and as snug
as possible.
•Check belt fit periodically. A child’s squirming or
slouching can move the belt out of position.
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 63
2

•If the shoulder belt contacts the face or neck, move the
child closer to the center of the vehicle. Never allow a
child to put the shoulder belt under an arm.
WARNING!
•Improper installation can lead to failure of an
infant or child restraint. It could come loose in a
collision. The child could be badly injured or
killed. Follow the manufacturer’s directions ex-
actly when installing an infant or child restraint.
•A rearward facing infant restraint should only be
used in a rear seat. A rearward facing infant
restraint in the front seat may be struck by a
deploying passenger airbag which may cause se-
vere or fatal to the infant.
Here are some tips for getting the most out of your child
restraint:
•Before buying any restraint system, make sure that it
has a label certifying that it meets all applicable Safety
Standards. The manufacturer recommends that you
try a child restraint in the vehicle seats where you will
use it before you buy it.
•The restraint must be appropriate for your child’s
weight and height. Check the label on the restraint for
weight and height limits.
•Carefully follow the instructions that come with the
restraint. If you install the restraint improperly, it may
not work when you need it.
•The second row outside seating positions and all third
row seats have cinching latch plates. The second row
center position has an automatic locking retractor.
These are designed to keep the lap portion tight
64 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

around the child restraint so that it is not necessary to
use a locking clip. If the seat belt has a cinching latch
plate, pulling up on the shoulder portion of the
lap/shoulder belt will tighten the belt. The cinching
latch plate will keep the belt tight, however, any seat
belt system will loosen with time, so check the belt
occasionally and pull it tight if necessary. If the seat
belt has a automatic locking retractor, it will have a
distinctive label. Pull the belt from the retractor until
there is enough to allow you to pass through the child
restraint and slide the latch plate into the buckle. Then,
pull the belt until it is all extracted from the retractor.
Allow the belt to return to the retractor, pulling on the
excess webbing to tighten the lap portion about the
child restraint. Refer toAutomatic Locking Mode
earlier in this section.
•Buckle the child into the restraint exactly as the
manufacturer’s instructions tell you.
•When your child restraint is not in use, secure it in the
vehicle with the seat belt or remove it from the vehicle.
Do not leave it loose in the vehicle. In a sudden stop or
collision, it could strike the occupants or seat backs
and cause serious personal injury.
LATCH - Child Seat Anchorage System (Lower
Anchors and Tether for CHildren)
Your vehicle’s second row seat is equipped with the child
restraint anchorage system called LATCH. The LATCH
system provides for the installation of the child restraint
without using the vehicle’s seat belts, instead securing
the child restraint using lower anchorages and upper
tether straps from the child restraint to the vehicle
structure. LATCH-compatible child restraint systems are
now available. However, because the lower anchorages
are to be introduced over a period of years, child restraint
systems having attachments for those anchorages will
continue to also have features for installation using the
vehicle’s seat belts. Child restraints having tether straps
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 65
2

and hooks for connection to the top tether anchorages
have been available for some time. For some older child
restraints, many child restraint manufacturers offer
add-on tether strap kits or retro-fit kits. You are urged to
take advantage of all the available attachments provided
with your child restraint in any vehicle.
All three second row seating positions have lower an-
chorages that are capable of accommodating LATCH-
compatible child seats having flexible, webbing-mounted
lower attachments. Child seats with fixed lower attach-
ments must be installed in the outboard positions only.
Regardless of the specific type of lower attachment,
NEVERinstall LATCH-compatible child seats such that
two seats share a common lower anchorage. If you are
installing LATCH-compatible child restraints in adjacent
rear seating positions, you can use the LATCH anchors or
the vehicle’s seat belt for the outboard position, but you
must use the vehicle’s seat belt at the center position. If
your child restraints are not LATCH-compatible, you canonly install the child restraints using the vehicle’s seat
belts. Please refer to the next section for typical installa-
tion instructions.
Second Row Seat Left Side
66 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

anchorages. Next attach the lower hooks or connectors
over the top of the anchorage bars, pushing aside the seat
cover material. Then attach the tether strap to the anchor-
age located on the back of the seat, being careful to route
the tether strap to provide the most direct path between
the anchor and the child restraint. If your vehicle is
equipped with adjustable rear head restraints, raise the
head restraint and, route the tether strap under the head
restraint and between the two posts. Finally, tighten all
three straps as you push the child restraint rearward and
downward into the seat, removing slack in the straps
according to the child restraint manufacturer’s instruc-
tions.
NOTE:When using the LATCH attaching system to
install a child restraint, please ensure that all seat belts
not being used for occupant restraints are stowed and out
of reach of children. It is recommended that before
installing the child restraint, buckle the seat belt so the
seat belt is tucked behind the child restraint and out ofreach. If the buckled seat belt interferes with the child
restraint installation, instead of tucking the seat belt
behind the child restraint, route the seat belt through the
child restraint belt path and then buckle it. This should
stow the seat belt out of the reach of an inquisitive child.
Remind all children in the vehicle that the seat belts are
not toys and should not be played with, and never leave
your child unattended in the vehicle.
WARNING!
Improper installation of a child restraint to the
LATCH anchorages can lead to failure of an infant or
child restraint. The child could be badly injured or
killed. Follow the manufacturer’s directions exactly
when installing an infant or child restraint.
68 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE