Page 50 of 376

Black plate (2,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
3-2 Seats and Restraints
Head Restraints
The vehicle's front seats have
adjustable head restraints in the
outboard seating positions.
{WARNING
With head restraints that are not
installed and adjusted properly,
there is a greater chance that
occupants will suffer a neck/
spinal injury in a crash. Do not
drive until the head restraints for
all occupants are installed and
adjusted properly.
Adjust the head restraint so that the
top of the restraint is at the same
height as the top of the occupant's
head. This position reduces the
chance of a neck injury in a crash.
The height of the head restraint can
be adjusted. Pull the head restraint
up to raise it. Try to move the head
restraint to make sure that it is
locked in place.To lower the head restraint, press
the button located on top of the
seatback, and push the head
restraint down. Try to move the
head restraint after the button is
released to make sure that it is
locked in place.
The front seat outboard head
restraints are not designed to
be removed.
Page 51 of 376
Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-3
Rear Seat
The vehicle's rear seat has head
restraints in the outboard seating
positions that cannot be adjusted.
The vehicle's rear seat has a
headrest in the center seating
position that cannot be adjusted.
The rear seat head restraints and
headrest are not designed to be
removed.Front Seats
Seat Adjustment
Manual Seats
{WARNING
You can lose control of the
vehicle if you try to adjust a
manual driver seat while the
vehicle is moving. The sudden
movement could startle and
confuse you, or make you push a
pedal when you do not want to.
Adjust the driver seat only when
the vehicle is not moving.To move a manual seat forward or
rearward:
1. Lift the bar under the front edge
of the seat cushion to unlock
the seat.
2. Slide the seat to the desired position and release the bar.
Try to move the seat back and forth
to be sure the seat is locked in
place.
Page 54 of 376

Black plate (6,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
3-6 Seats and Restraints
Manual Reclining Seatbacks
{WARNING
You can lose control of the
vehicle if you try to adjust a
manual driver seat while the
vehicle is moving. The sudden
movement could startle and
confuse you, or make you push a
pedal when you do not want to.
Adjust the driver seat only when
the vehicle is not moving.
{WARNING
If either seatback is not locked, it
could move forward in a sudden
stop or crash. That could cause
injury to the person sitting there.
Always push and pull on the
seatbacks to be sure they
are locked.
To recline a manual seatback:
1. Lift the lever.
2. Move the seatback to thedesired position, and then
release the lever to lock the
seatback in place.
3. Push and pull on the seatback to make sure it is locked.
To return the seatback to the
upright position:
1. Lift the lever fully without applying pressure to the
seatback, and the seatback will
return to the upright position. 2. Push and pull on the seatback to
make sure it is locked.
Power Reclining Seatbacks
To adjust a power seatback,
if equipped:
.Tilt the top of the control
rearward to recline.
.Tilt the top of the control forward
to raise.
Page 57 of 376

Black plate (9,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-9
To return the seats to the normal
position:
{WARNING
If either seatback is not locked, it
could move forward in a sudden
stop or crash. That could cause
injury to the person sitting there.
Always push and pull on the
seatbacks to be sure they
are locked.1. Raise the seatback and make
sure it latches.
{WARNING
A safety belt that is improperly
routed, not properly attached,
or twisted will not provide the
protection needed in a crash.
The person wearing the belt could
be seriously injured. After raising
the rear seatback, always check
to be sure that the safety belts
are properly routed and attached,
and are not twisted.
2. Make sure the safety belts are properly stowed over the
seatback in all three seating
positions. 3. Flip the bottom seat cushion
back into place. Push down
firmly on the seat cushion to
make sure it is secure.
When the seat is not in use, the
seatback should be placed in the
upright, locked position, and
the seat cushion should be in
the down position.
Under Seat Storage
The vehicle has a storage area
under the rear seat. See Rear
Storage on page 4‑2 for more
information.
Page 62 of 376
Black plate (14,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
3-14 Seats and Restraints
First, before you or your
passenger(s) wear a safety belt,
there is important information you
should know.
Sit up straight and always keep your
feet on the floor in front of you. The
lap part of the belt should be worn
low and snug on the hips, justtouching the thighs. In a crash, this
applies force to the strong pelvic
bones and you would be less likely
to slide under the lap belt. If you slid
under it, the belt would apply force
on your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The
shoulder belt should go over the
shoulder and across the chest.
These parts of the body are best
able to take belt restraining forces.
The shoulder belt locks if there is a
sudden stop or crash.
Q: What is wrong with this?
A:
The shoulder belt is too loose.
It will not give as much
protection this way.
Page 67 of 376

Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-19
Lap-Shoulder Belt
All seating positions in the vehicle
have a lap-shoulder belt except for
the center front passenger position
(if equipped), which has a lap belt.
SeeLap Belt on page 3‑24 for more
information.
The following instructions explain
how to wear a lap-shoulder belt
properly.
1. Adjust the seat, if the seat is adjustable, so you can sit up
straight. To see how, see
“Seats” in the Index.
2. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Do not let it
get twisted.
The lap-shoulder belt may lock if
you pull the belt across you very
quickly. If this happens, let the
belt go back slightly to unlock it.
Then pull the belt across you
more slowly. If the shoulder portion of a
passenger belt is pulled out all
the way, the child restraint
locking feature may be engaged.
If this happens, let the belt go
back all the way and start again.
Engaging the child restraint
locking feature in the right front
seating position may affect the
passenger sensing system. See
Passenger Sensing System on
page 3‑34.
3. Push the latch plate into the
buckle until it clicks. If the latch plate will not go fully
into the buckle, check if the
correct buckle is being used.
Pull up on the latch plate to
make sure it is secure. If the belt
is not long enough, see
Safety
Belt Extender on page 3‑24.
Position the release button on
the buckle so that the safety belt
could be quickly unbuckled if
necessary.
4. If equipped with a shoulder belt height adjuster, move it to the
height that is right for you. See
“Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster”
in this section for instructions on
use and important safety
information.
Page 69 of 376

Black plate (21,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-21
Squeeze the buttons (A) on the
sides of the height adjuster and
move the height adjuster to the
desired position.You can move the adjuster up
just by pushing up on the shoulder
belt guide.
After the adjuster is set to the
desired position, try to move it down
without squeezing the buttons to
make sure it has locked into
position.
Safety Belt Pretensioners
This vehicle has safety belt
pretensioners for front outboard
occupants. Although the safety belt
pretensioners cannot be seen, they
are part of the safety belt assembly.
They can help tighten the safety
belts during the early stages of a
moderate to severe frontal and
near frontal crash if the threshold
conditions for pretensioneractivation are met. And, if the
vehicle has side impact airbags,
safety belt pretensioners can
help tighten the safety belts in a
side crash.
Pretensioners work only once. If the
pretensioners activate in a crash,
they will need to be replaced, and
probably other new parts for the
vehicle's safety belt system. See
Replacing Safety Belt System Parts
After a Crash on page 3‑25.
Page 77 of 376
Black plate (29,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-29
Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
The roof-rail airbags for the driver,
right front passenger, and second
row outboard passengers are in the
ceiling above the side windows.
{WARNING
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into
that person causing severe injury
or even death. The path of an
inflating 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. (Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
Do not use seat accessories
that block the inflation 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 inflating roof-rail airbag
will be blocked.