
Black plate (41,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
Where to Put the Restraint
According to accident statistics, children and infants are
safer when properly restrained in a child restraint
system or infant restraint system secured in a rear
seating position.
We recommend that children and child restraints be
secured in a rear seat, including: an infant or a child
riding in a rear-facing child restraint; a child riding in
a forward-facing child seat; an older child riding in a
booster seat; and children, who are large enough, using
safety belts.
A label on your sun visor says,“Never put a rear-facing
child seat in the front.” This is because the risk to the
rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
{WARNING:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates. This is because the
back of the rear-facing child restraint would be
very close to the inflating airbag. A child in a
forward-facing child restraint can be seriously
(Continued)
WARNING: (Continued)
injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag
inflates and the passenger seat is in a forward
position.
Even if the passenger sensing system has turned
off the right front passenger frontal airbag, no
system is fail-safe. No one can guarantee that
an airbag will not deploy under some unusual
circumstance, even though it is turned off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear
seat, even if the airbag is off. If you secure a
forward-facing child restraint in the right front
seat, always move the front passenger seat as
far back as it will go. It is better to secure the
child restraint in a rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing System
on page 2‑64
for additional information.
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Black plate (42,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
{WARNING:
A child in a child restraint in the center front seat
can be badly injured or killed by the frontal
airbags if they inflate. Never secure a child
restraint in the center front seat. It is always better
to secure a child restraint in a rear seat.
Do not use child restraints in the center front seat
position.
When securing a child restraint in a rear seating
position, study the instructions that came with your child
restraint to make sure it is compatible with this vehicle.
Child restraints and booster seats vary considerably in
size, and some may fit in certain seating positions
better than others. Always make sure the child restraint
is properly secured. Depending on where you place the child restraint and
the size of the child restraint, you may not be able to
access adjacent safety belt assemblies or LATCH
anchors for additional passengers or child restraints.
Adjacent seating positions should not be used if the
child restraint prevents access to or interferes with the
routing of the safety belt.
Wherever a child restraint is installed, be sure to secure
the child restraint properly.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child restraint can
move around in a collision or sudden stop and injure
people in the vehicle. Be sure to properly secure any
child restraint in your vehicle
—even when no child
is in it.
Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH)
The LATCH system holds a child restraint during
driving or in a crash. This system is designed to make
installation of a child restraint easier. The LATCH
system uses anchors in the vehicle and attachments on
the child restraint that are made for use with the LATCH
system.
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Black plate (43,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
Make sure that a LATCH-compatible child restraint
is properly installed using the anchors, or use the
vehicle's safety belts to secure the restraint, following
the instructions that came with that restraint, and also
the instructions in this manual. When installing a child
restraint with a top tether, you must also use either the
lower anchors or the safety belts to properly secure the
child restraint. A child restraint must never be installed
using only the top tether and anchor.
In order to use the LATCH system in your vehicle, you
need a child restraint that has LATCH attachments.
The child restraint manufacturer will provide you with
instructions on how to use the child restraint and its
attachments. The following explains how to attach a
child restraint with these attachments in your vehicle.
Not all vehicle seating positions or child restraints have
lower anchors and attachments or top tether anchors
and attachments.Lower Anchors
Lower anchors (A) are metal bars built into the vehicle.
There are two lower anchors for each LATCH seating
position that will accommodate a child restraint with
lower attachments (B).
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Black plate (46,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
According to accident statistics, children and infants
are safer when properly restrained in a child restraint
system or infant restraint system secured in a rear
seating position. SeeWhere to Put the Restraint
on
page 2‑41for additional information.
Securing a Child Restraint Designed for the
LATCH System
{WARNING:
If a LATCH-type child restraint is not attached to
anchors, the child restraint will not be able to
protect the child correctly. In a crash, the child
could be seriously injured or killed. Install a
LATCH-type child restraint properly using the
anchors, or use the vehicle safety belts to secure
the restraint, following the instructions that came
with the child restraint and the instructions in this
manual.
{WARNING:
Do not attach more than one child restraint to a
single anchor. Attaching more than one child
restraint to a single anchor could cause the
anchor or attachment to come loose or even
break during a crash. A child or others could be
injured. To reduce the risk of serious or fatal
injuries during a crash, attach only one child
restraint per anchor.
{WARNING:
Children can be seriously injured or strangled if a
shoulder belt is wrapped around their neck and
the safety belt continues to tighten. Buckle any
unused safety belts behind the child restraint so
children cannot reach them. Pull the shoulder
belt all the way out of the retractor to set the lock,
if the vehicle has one, after the child restraint has
been installed.
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Black plate (47,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
Notice:Do not let the LATCH attachments rub
against the vehicle’ s safety belts. This may damage
these parts. If necessary, move buckled safety belts
to avoid rubbing the LATCH attachments.
Do not fold the empty rear seat with a safety belt
buckled. This could damage the safety belt or the
seat. Unbuckle and return the safety belt to its
stowed position, before folding the seat.
1. Attach and tighten the lower attachments to the lower anchors. If the child restraint does not have
lower attachments or the desired seating position
does not have lower anchors, secure the child
restraint with the top tether and the safety belts.
Refer to your child restraint manufacturer
instructions and the instructions in this manual.
1. 1. Find the lower anchors for the desired seating position.
1. 2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
1. 3. Attach and tighten the lower attachments on the child restraint to the lower anchors. 2. If the child restraint manufacturer recommends that
the top tether be attached, attach and tighten the
top tether to the top tether anchor, if equipped.
Refer to the child restraint instructions and the
following steps:
2. 1. Find the top tether anchor.
2. 2. Flip open the top tether anchor cover to
expose the anchor.
2. 3. Route, attach, and tighten the top tether according to your child restraint instructions
and the following instructions:
If the position you are
using does not have a
headrest or head restraint
and you are using a
single tether, route the
tether over the seatback.
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Black plate (49,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Seat Position
When securing a child restraint in a rear seating
position, study the instructions that came with the child
restraint to make sure it is compatible with this vehicle.
If the child restraint has the LATCH system, see
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH)
on
page 2‑42for how and where to install the child
restraint using LATCH. If a child restraint is secured in
the vehicle using a safety belt and it uses a top tether,
see Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH)
on page 2‑42for top tether anchor locations.
Do not secure a child seat in a position without a top
tether anchor if a national or local law requires that the
top tether be anchored, or if the instructions that come
with the child restraint say that the top strap must be
anchored.
In Canada, the law requires that forward-facing child
restraints have a top tether, and that the tether be
attached.
If the child restraint does not have the LATCH
system, you will be using the safety belt to secure
the child restraint in this position. Be sure to follow
the instructions that came with the child restraint.
Secure the child in the child restraint when and as
the instructions say. If more than one child restraint needs to be installed
in the rear seat, be sure to read
Where to Put the
Restraint on page 2‑41.
1. Put the child restraint on the seat.
2. 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.
3. 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.
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Black plate (50,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
4. Pull the shoulder belt all the way out of theretractor to set the lock. When the retractor lock
is set, the belt can be tightened but not pulled out
of the retractor.5. To tighten the belt, push down on the childrestraint, 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.
Try to pull the belt out of the retractor to make sure
the retractor is locked. If the retractor is not locked,
repeat Steps 4 and 5.
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Black plate (51,1)Buick Lucerne Owner Manual - 2011
6. If the child restraint has a top tether, follow thechild restraint manufacturer's instructions regarding
the use of the top tether. See Lower Anchors and
Tethers for Children (LATCH)
on page 2‑42for
more information.
7. Before placing a child in the child restraint, make sure it is securely held in place. To check, grasp
the child restraint at the safety belt path and
attempt to move it side‐to‐side and back‐and‐forth.
When the child restraint is properly installed, there
should be no more than 2.5 cm (1 in) of movement.
To remove the child restraint, unbuckle the vehicle
safety belt and let it return to the stowed position.
If the top tether is attached to a top tether anchor,
disconnect it.
Securing a Child Restraint in the
Center Front Seat Position
{WARNING:
A child in a child restraint in the center front
seat can be badly injured or killed by the frontal
airbags if they inflate. Never secure a child
restraint in the center front seat. It is always
better to secure a child restraint in a rear seat.
Do not use child restraints in the center front seat
position.
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