
Black plate (56,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
5. 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.6. 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 5 and 6.
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7. Before placing a child in the child restraint, makesure 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.
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 2‑66for 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 seat-mounted side impact airbag for the driver.
.A seat-mounted side impact 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.
All of the airbags in your 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 inflating bag, all airbags must inflate very
quickly to do their job.
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{WARNING:
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
airbag when it inflates 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 2‑34
or Infants and Young Childrenon
page 2‑38
.
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. See
Airbag Readiness Light
on page 4‑54for
more information.
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver's frontal airbag is in the middle of the
steering wheel.
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Black plate (66,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Passenger Sensing System
The vehicle has a passenger sensing system for the
right front passenger position. The passenger airbag
status indicator will be visible on the overhead console
when you start the vehicle.
United StatesCanada
The words ON and OFF, or the symbol for on and off,
will be visible during the system check. If you are using
remote start to start your vehicle from a distance,
if equipped, you may not see the system check. When
the system check is complete, either the word ON or
the word OFF, or the symbol for on or the symbol for off,
will be visible. See Passenger Airbag Status Indicator
on page 4‑55. The passenger sensing system will turn off the right
front passenger frontal airbag under certain conditions.
The driver airbag, seat‐mounted side impact airbags
and the roof‐rail airbags are not part of the passenger
sensing system.
The passenger sensing system works with sensors
that are part of the right front passenger seat. The
sensors are designed to detect the presence of a
properly-seated occupant and determine if the right
front passenger's frontal airbag should be enabled
(may inflate) or not.
According to statistics, children are safer when properly
secured in a rear seat in the correct child restraint for
their weight and size.
We recommend that children 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 the 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.
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{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
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 the airbag 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.The passenger sensing system is designed to turn off
the right front passenger frontal airbag if:
.The right front passenger seat is unoccupied.
.The system determines that an infant is present in
a rear-facing infant seat.
.The system determines that a small child is
present in a child restraint.
.The system determines that a small child is
present in a booster seat.
.A right front passenger takes his/her weight off of
the seat for a period of time.
.The right front passenger seat is occupied by a
smaller person, such as a child who has outgrown
child restraints.
.Or, if there is a critical problem with the airbag
system or the passenger sensing system.
When the passenger sensing system has turned off the
right front passenger's frontal airbag, the off indicator
will light and stay lit to remind you that the airbag is off.
See Passenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 4‑55.
If a child restraint has been installed and the on
indicator is lit, turn the vehicle off. Remove the child
restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the child restraint
following the child restraint manufacturer's directions
and refer to Securing a Child Restraint in the Right
Front Seat Position on page 2‑53.
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Black plate (68,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
If, after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting the
vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, check to make sure
that the vehicle's seatback is not pressing the child
restraint into the seat cushion. If this happens, slightly
recline the vehicle's seatback and adjust the seat
cushion if possible. Also make sure the child restraint
is not trapped under the vehicle head restraint. If this
happens, adjust the head restraint. SeeHead
Restraints
on page 2‑12.
Remove any additional material from the seat such as
blankets, cushions, seat covers, seat heaters, or seat
massagers before reinstalling or securing the child
restraint.
If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the child
restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle, and check
with your dealer.
The passenger sensing system is designed to enable
(may inflate) the right front passenger's frontal airbag
anytime the system senses that a person of adult size is
sitting properly in the right front passenger's seat. When
the passenger sensing system has allowed the airbag
to be enabled, the on indicator will light and stay lit to
remind you that the airbag is active. For some children who have outgrown child restraints
and for very small adults, the passenger sensing
system may or may not turn off the right front
passenger's frontal airbag, depending upon the
person's seating posture and body build. Everyone in
your vehicle who has outgrown child restraints should
wear a safety belt properly
—whether or not there
is an airbag for that person.
If a person of adult-size is sitting in the right front
passenger's seat, but the off indicator is lit, it could be
because that person is not sitting properly in the seat.
If this happens, turn the vehicle off, remove any
additional material from the seat, such as blankets,
cushions, seat covers, seat heaters or seat massagers
and ask the person to place the seatback in the fully
upright position, then sit upright in the seat, centered on
the seat cushion, with the person's legs comfortably
extended. Restart the vehicle and have the person
remain in this position for two to three minutes. This will
allow the system to detect that person and then enable
the right front passenger's frontal airbag.
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Safety belts help keep the passenger in position on the
seat during vehicle maneuvers and braking, which helps
the passenger sensing system maintain the passenger
airbag status. See“Safety Belts”and“Child Restraints”
in the Index for additional information about the
importance of proper restraint use.
{WARNING:
If the airbag readiness light in the instrument
panel cluster ever comes on and stays on, it
means that something may be wrong with the
airbag system. If this ever happens, have the
vehicle serviced promptly, because an adult-size
person sitting in the right front passenger's seat
may not have the protection of the airbag(s). See
Airbag Readiness Light
on page 4‑54for more
on this, including important safety information.
A thick layer of additional material, such as a blanket
or cushion, or aftermarket equipment such as seat
covers, seat heaters, and seat massagers can affect
how well the passenger sensing system operates.
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Black plate (56,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Then, after several more seconds, the status indicator
will light either ON or OFF, or either the on or off symbol
to let you know the status of the right front passenger's
frontal airbag.
If the word ON or the on symbol is lit on the passenger
airbag status indicator, it means that the right front
passenger's frontal airbag is enabled (may inflate).
{WARNING:
If the on indicator comes on when you have a
rear-facing child restraint installed in the right
front passenger's seat, it means that the
passenger sensing system has not turned off the
passenger's frontal airbag. A child in a rear-facing
child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if
the right front passenger's airbag inflates. This is
because the back of the rear-facing child restraint
would be very close to the inflating airbag. Do not
use a rear-facing child restraint in the right front
passenger's seat if the airbag is turned on.
{WARNING:
Even though the passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the right front passenger's
frontal airbag if the system detects a rear-facing
child restraint, no system is fail-safe, and no one
can guarantee that an airbag will not deploy under
some unusual circumstance, even though it is
turned off. We recommend that rear-facing child
restraints be secured in the rear seat, even if the
airbag is off.
If the word OFF or the off symbol is lit on the airbag
status indicator, it means that the passenger sensing
system has turned off the right front passenger's frontal
airbag. See Passenger Sensing System
on page 2‑66for more on this, including important safety information.
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