2009 HUMMER H3 Owners Manual

You will be using the lap-shoulder
belt to secure the child restraint in
this position. Follow the instructions
that came with the child restraint.
1. Move the seat as far back as it
will go before securing the
forward-facing child restraint.
When the passenger sensing
system has turned off the
right front passenger frontal
airbag, the off indicator on the
passenger airbag status indicator
should light and stay lit when
the vehicle is started. See
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 3-26.
2. Put the child restraint on
the seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run
the lap and shoulder portions of
the vehicle’s safety belt through
or around the restraint. The child
restraint instructions will show
you how.4. Push the latch plate into the
buckle until it clicks.
Position the release button on
the buckle so that the safety belt
could be quickly unbuckled if
necessary.5. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt
all the way out of the retractor to
set the lock.
Seats and Restraint System 1-45

6. To tighten the belt, push down on
the child restraint, pull the
shoulder portion of the belt to
tighten the lap portion of the belt
and feed the shoulder belt back
into the retractor. When installing
a forward-facing child restraint, it
may be 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.If the airbag is off, the off indicator
in the passenger airbag status
indicator will come on and stay on
when the vehicle is started.
If a child restraint has been installed
and the on indicator is lit, see
“If the On Indicator is Lit for a Child
Restraint ” underPassenger Sensing
System on page 1-54for more
information.
To remove the child restraint,
unbuckle the vehicle safety belt and
let it return to the stowed position.
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
A frontal airbag for the driver.
A frontal airbag for the right front
passenger.
A roof-rail airbag for the driver
and the passenger seated
directly behind the driver.
A roof-rail airbag for the right
front passenger and the
passenger seated directly behind
the right front passenger.
1-46 Seats and Restraint System

The vehicle may have the following
airbags:
A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the driver.
A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the right front
passenger.
All of the airbags in the vehicle will
have the word AIRBAG embossed in
the trim or on an attached label near
the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the middle
part of the steering wheel for
the driver and on the instrument
panel for the right front passenger.With seat-mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG
will appear on the side of the
seatback closest to the door.
With roof-rail airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear along the
headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today’s airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inating bag, all airbags must
inate very quickly to do their job.Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:
{CAUTION
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt — even if
you have airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are your only
restraint. SeeWhen Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 1-50.
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things inside the vehicle
or being ejected from it. Airbags
are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. Everyone in your
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly — whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
Seats and Restraint System 1-47

{CAUTION
Airbags inate with great force,
faster than the blink of an eye.
Anyone who is up against, or very
close to, any airbag when it
inates can be seriously injured or
killed. Do not sit unnecessarily
close to the airbag, as you would
be if you were sitting on the edge
of your seat or leaning forward.
Safety belts help keep you in
position before and during a
crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with airbags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible
while still maintaining control of
the vehicle.
Occupants should not lean on or
sleep against the door or side
windows in seating positions with
seat-mounted side impact airbags
and/or roof-rail airbags.
{CAUTION
Children who are up against, or
very close to, any airbag when it
inates 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. Always secure children
properly in your vehicle. To read
how, seeOlder Children on
page 1-25orInfants and Young
Children on page 1-28.There is an airbag readiness light
on the instrument panel cluster,
which shows the airbag symbol.
The system checks the airbag
electrical system for malfunctions.
The light tells you if there is an
electrical problem. SeeAirbag
Readiness Light on page 3-25for
more information.
1-48 Seats and Restraint System

Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
middle of the steering wheel.The right front passenger frontal
airbag is in the instrument panel on
the passenger’s side.
If the vehicle has seat-mounted side
impact airbags for the driver and
right front passenger, they are in the
side of the seatbacks closest to
the door.
Driver Side shown, Passenger
Side similar
Seats and Restraint System 1-49

The roof-rail airbags for the driver,
right front passenger, and second
row outboard passengers are in the
ceiling above the side windows.
{CAUTION
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inate properly or
it might force the object into that
person causing severe injury or
even death. The path of an
inating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories that
block the ination path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of an
inating roof-rail airbag will be
blocked.
When Should an Airbag
Inate?
Frontal airbags are designed to
inate in moderate to severe frontal
or near-frontal crashes to help
reduce the potential for severe
injuries mainly to the driver’s or right
front passenger’s head and chest.
However, they are only designed to
inate if the impact exceeds a
predetermined deployment
threshold. Deployment thresholds
are used to predict how severe a
crash is likely to be in time for the
airbags to inate and help restrain
the occupants.
Whether the frontal airbags will or
should deploy is not based on
how fast your vehicle is traveling.
It depends largely on what you
hit, the direction of the impact,
and how quickly your vehicle
slows down. Driver Side shown, Passenger
Side similar
1-50 Seats and Restraint System

Frontal airbags may inate at
different crash speeds. For example:
If the vehicle hits a stationary
object, the airbags could inate at
a different crash speed than if the
vehicle hits a moving object.
If the vehicle hits an object that
deforms, the airbags could inate
at a different crash speed than if
the vehicle hits an object that
does not deform.
If the vehicle hits a narrow object
(like a pole), the airbags could
inate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle hits a wide
object (like a wall).
If the vehicle goes into an object
at an angle, the airbags could
inate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle goes straight
into the object.
Thresholds can also vary with
specic vehicle design.
Frontal airbags are not intended to
inate during vehicle rollovers, rear
impacts, or in many side impacts.In addition, the vehicle has
dual-stage frontal airbags.
Dual-stage airbags adjust the
restraint according to crash severity.
The vehicle has electronic frontal
sensors, which help the sensing
system distinguish between a
moderate frontal impact and a
more severe frontal impact.
For moderate frontal impacts,
dual-stage airbags inate at a
level less than full deployment.
For more severe frontal impacts,
full deployment occurs.
The vehicle may or may not have
seat-mounted side impact airbags.
The vehicle has roof-rail airbags.
SeeAirbag System on page 1-46.
Seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags are intended
to inate in moderate to severe side
crashes. In addition, these roof-rail
airbags are intended to inate during
a rollover or in a severe frontal
impact. Seat-mounted side impact
and roof-rail airbags will inate if
the crash severity is above thesystem’s designed threshold level.
The threshold level can vary
with specic vehicle design.
Seat-mounted side impact airbags
are not intended to inate in frontal
impacts, near-frontal impacts,
rollovers, or rear impacts. Roof-rail
airbags are not intended to inate in
rear impacts. A seat-mounted side
impact airbag is intended to deploy
on the side of the vehicle that is
struck. Both roof-rail airbags will
deploy when either side of the
vehicle is struck, or if the sensing
system predicts that the vehicle is
about to roll over, or in a severe
frontal impact.
In any particular crash, no one
can say whether an airbag should
have inated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
For frontal airbags, ination is
determined by what the vehicle
hits, the angle of the impact, and
how quickly the vehicle slows down.
For seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags, deployment is
Seats and Restraint System 1-51

determined by the location and
severity of the side impact. In a
rollover event, roof-rail airbag
deployment is determined by the
direction of the roll.
What Makes an Airbag
Inate?
In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inator. Gas from the inator lls the
airbag causing the bag to break out
of the cover and deploy. The inator,
the airbag, and related hardware are
all part of the airbag module.
Frontal airbag modules are located
inside the steering wheel and
instrument panel. For vehicles with
seat-mounted side impact airbags,
there are airbag modules in the side
of the front seatbacks closest to
the door. For vehicles with roof-rail
airbags, there are airbag modules
in the ceiling of the vehicle, near the
side windows that have occupant
seating positions.
How Does an Airbag
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.
Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts.
Frontal airbags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the
occupant’s upper body, stopping the
occupant more gradually.
Seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the
occupant’s upper body.
Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are
designed to help contain the head
and chest of occupants in the
outboard seating positions in the
rst, second, and third rows. The
rollover capable roof-rail airbags are
designed to help reduce the risk offull or partial ejection in rollover
events, although no system can
prevent all such ejections.
But airbags would not help in many
types of collisions, primarily because
the occupant’s motion is not toward
those airbags. SeeWhen Should
an Airbag Inflate? on page 1-50
for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts.
What Will You See After
an Airbag Inates?
After the frontal airbags and
seat-mounted side impact airbags
inate, they quickly deate, so
quickly that some people may not
even realize an airbag inated.
Roof-rail airbags may still be at least
partially inated for some time after
they deploy. Some components of
the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the
airbag modules, seeWhat Makes an
Airbag Inflate? on page 1-52.
1-52 Seats and Restraint System