2007 HONDA FIT Owners Manual

Only a rear-f acing child seat provides
proper support f or a baby’s head,
neck, and back. An inf ant must be properly
restrained in a rear-f acing, reclining
child seat until the child reaches the
seat maker’s weight or height limit
f or the seat, and the child is at least
one year old.Two types of seats may be used: a
seat designed exclusively f or inf ants,
or a convertible seat used in the rear-
f acing, reclining mode.
If placed
f acing f orward, an inf ant could be
very seriously injured during a
f rontal collision. A rear-f acing child seat can be placed
in any seating position in the back
seat, but not in the f ront.
If the passenger’s front airbag
inflates, it can hit the back of the
child seat with enough f orce to kill or
seriously injure an inf ant.
When properly installed, a rear-
f acing child seat may prevent the
driver or a f ront passenger f rom
moving their seat as far back as
recommended, or f rom locking their
seat-back in the desired position.
Or, it can interf ere with proper
operation of the passenger’s
advanced front airbag system.
CONT INUED
Do not put a rear-f acing child seat in
a f orward-f acing position.
Child Seat T ype Never put a
rear-f acing child seat in t he f ront seat .
Child Seat Placement
Protecting Inf ants
Protecting Inf ants and Small Children
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
39

Of the different seats available, we
recommend those that have a f ive-
point harness system as shown.
In any of these situations, we
strongly recommend that you install
the child seat directly behind the
f ront passenger’s seat, move the seat
as far forward as needed, and leave it
unoccupied. Or, you may wish to get
a smaller rear-f acing child seat.
We also recommend that a small
child use the child seat until the child
reaches the weight or height limit
for the seat.
We strongly recommend placing a
forward-facing child seat in a back
seat, not the f ront.
If the vehicle seat is too
f ar f orward, or the child’s head is
thrown f orward during a collision, an
inf lating airbag can strike the child
with enough force to cause very
serious or fatal injuries.
A child who is at least one year old,
and who fits within the child seat
maker’s weight and height limits,
should be restrained in a f orward-
f acing, upright child seat.
Protecting Inf ants and Small Children
Protecting Small Children
Child Seat T ype Child Seat Placement
Placing a f orward-f acing child seat inthe f ront seat of a vehicle equippedwith a passenger’s airbag can behazardous.
40
Placing a rear-facing child seat
in the front seat can result in
serious injury or death during a
collision.
Always place a rear-facing child
seat in the back seat, not the
front.

In seating positions and vehicles not
equipped with LATCH, a LATCH-
compatible child seat can be installed
using a seat belt.
Whatever type of seat you choose, to
provide proper pro tection, a child
seat should meet three
requirements:
Look for FMVSS
213 or CMVSS 213 on the box.
Rear-facing for infa nts, forward-
facing for small children.
We also recommend selecting a
LATCH-compatible seat with a rigid,
rather than a flexible, anchor (see
page ).
Since
LATCH-compatible child seats
are easier to install and reduce the
possibility of improper installation,
we recommend selecting this style.
Conventional
child seats must be
secured to a vehicle with a seat belt,
whereas LATCH-compatible seats
are secured by atta ching the seat to
hardware built into the two outer
seating positions in the back seat.
When
buying a child seat, you need
to choose either a conventional child
seat, or one designed for use with
the lower anchors and tethers for
children (LATCH) system.
If it is necessary to put a fo rward-
facing child seat in the front, move
the vehicle seat as far to the rear as
possible, and be sure the child seat is
firmly secured to the vehicle and the
child is properly strapped in the seat.
Ev
en with advanced front airbags
that automatically turn the
passenger’s front airbag off (see
page ), a back seat is the saf est
place f or a small child. 31
43
CONT INUED
T he child seat should meet U.S. orCanadian Mot or Vehicle Saf et ySt andard 213.
T he child seat should be of theproper type and size to f it the child.
Protecting Inf ants and Small Children, Selecting a Child Seat
Selecting a Child Seat
2.
1.
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
41
Placing a forward-facing child
seat in the front seat can result
in serious injury or death if the
front airbag inflates.
Ifyoumustplaceaforward-
facing child seat in front, move
the vehicle seat as far back as
possible, and properly restrain
the child.

Af ter selecting a proper child seat
and a good place to install the seat,
there are three main steps in
installing the seat:Af ter installing a child
seat, push and pull the seat
f orward and f rom side-to-side to
verify that it is secure.
A child seat secured with a seat belt
should be installed as f irmly as
possible. However, it does not need
to be ‘‘rock solid.’’ Some side-to-side movement can be expected and
should not reduce the child seat’s
ef f ectiveness.
If the child seat is not secure, try
installing it in a dif f erent seating
position, or use a dif f erent style of
child seat that can be f irmly secured.
Make sure the child is properly
strappedinthechildseat
according to the child seat maker’s
instructions. A child who is not
properly secured in a child seat
can be seriously injured in a crash.
The f ollowing pages provide
guidelines on how to properly install
a child seat. A f orward-f acing child
seat is used in all examples, but the
instructions are the same f or rear-
f acing child seats.
All child seats must be
secured to the vehicle with the lap
part of a lap/shoulder belt or with
the LATCH (lower anchors and
tethers for children) system. A
child whose seat is not properly
secured to the vehicle can be
endangered in a crash.
Bef ore purchasing a conventional
child seat, or using a previously
purchased one, we recommend that
you test the seat in the specif ic
vehicle seating position or positions
where the seat will be used.
Selecting a Child Seat, Installing a Child Seat
Installing a Child Seat
3.
1.
2.
3.
Make sure t he child seat is f irmly
secured. Secure the child in the child seat.
Properly secure t he child seat t o
the vehicle.
T he child seat should f it the
vehicle seat ing posit ion (orposit ions) where it will be used.
42

Place the child seat on the vehicle
seat, then attach the seat to the
lower anchors according to the
child seat maker’s instructions.
Your vehicle is equipped with
LATCH (lower anchors and tethers
for children) at the outer rear seats.
Make sure there are no objects
near the anchors that could
prevent a secure connection
between the child seat and the
anchors. Move the seat belt buckle or
tongue away f rom the lower
anchors.
To install a LATCH-compatible child
seat:
Some LATCH-compatible seats
have a rigid-type connector as
shown above.
The lower anchors are located
between the seat-back and seat
bottom, and are to be used only with
a child seat designed f or use with
LATCH.
The location of each lower anchor is
indicated by a small button above the
anchor point.
1.
2.3.
CONT INUED
Installing a Child Seat
Installing a Child Seat with
LATCH
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
43
LOWER ANCHORS
Rigid type
BUTTON

Whatever type you have, f ollow
the child seat maker’s instructions
f or adjusting or tightening the f it. Other LATCH-compatible seats
have a f lexible-type connector as
shown above.Route the tether strap over the
seat-back and through the head
restraint legs.
Attach the tether strap hook to the
anchor, making sure the strap is
not twisted.Tighten the strap according to the
seat maker’s instructions.
Push and pull the child seat
f orward and f rom side-to-side to
verify that it is secure.
5.
4. 6. 7.
8.
Installing a Child Seat
44
TETHER STRAP HOOK
Flexible type ANCHOR

When not using the LATCH system,
all child seats must be secured to the
vehicle with the lap part of a lap/
shoulder belt.
With the child seat in the desired
seating position, route the belt
th rough the child seat according
to the seat maker’s instructions,
then insert the latch plate into the
buckl e. To
activate the lockable retractor,
slowly pull the shoulder part of the
belt all the way out until it stops,
th en let the belt feed back into the
retractor.
After the belt has retracted, tug on
it. If the belt is locked, you will not
be able to pull it out. If you can pull
thebeltout,itisnotlocked,and
you will need to repeat these steps.
In
addition, the lap/shoulder belts in
all seating positions except the
driver’s have a locking mechanism
that must be activated to secure a
child seat.
If you intend to install a child seat in
the center seating position of the
rear seat, remove its head restraint,
and make sure the detachable seat
belt is securely latched (see page ). 2.
1.
3.
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CONT INUED
Installing a Child Seat with a L ap/
Shoulder Belt
Installing a Child Seat
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
45

Af ter conf irming that the belt is
locked, grab the shoulder part of
the belt near the buckle, and pull
up to remove any slack from the
lap part of the belt. Remember, if
the lap part of the belt is not tight,
the child seat will not be secure.Push and pull the child seat
f orward and f rom side-to-side to
verify that it is secure enough to
stay upright during normal driving
maneuvers. If the child seat is not
secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract f ully, then repeat these
steps.To deactivate the locking
mechanism and remove a child seat,
unlatch the buckle, unroute the seat
belt, and let the belt f ully retract.
To remove slack, it may help to
putweightonthechildseat,or
push on the back of the seat while
pulling up on the belt.
4. 5.
Installing a Child Seat
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