2012 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN Owners Manual

Black plate (49,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-49
{WARNING
To reduce the risk of neck and
head injury during a crash, infants
need complete support. This is
because an infant's neck is not
fully developed and its head
weighs so much compared with
the rest of its body. In a crash,
an infant in a rear-facing child
restraint settles into the restraint,
so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest
part of an infant's body, the back
and shoulders. Infants should
always be secured in rear-facing
child restraints.
{WARNING
A young child's hip bones are still
so small that the vehicle's regular
safety belt may not remain low
on the hip bones, as it should.
Instead, it may settle up around
the child's abdomen. In a crash,
the belt would apply force on a
body area that is unprotected by
any bony structure. This alone
could cause serious or fatal
injuries. To reduce the risk of
serious or fatal injuries during a
crash, young children should
always be secured in appropriate
child restraints.
Child Restraint Systems
(A) Rear‐Facing Infant Seat
A rear-facing infant seat (A)
provides restraint with the seating
surface against the back of the
infant.
The harness system holds the infant
in place and, in a crash, acts to
keep the infant positioned in the
restraint.

Black plate (50,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
3-50 Seats and Restraints
(B) Forward-Facing Child Seat
A forward-facing child seat (B)
provides restraint for the child's
body with the harness.(C) Booster Seats
A booster seat (C) is a child restraint
designed to improve the fit of
the vehicle's safety belt system.
A booster seat can also help a child
to see out the window.
Securing an Add-On Child
Restraint in the Vehicle
{WARNING
A child can be seriously injured
or killed in a crash if the child
restraint is not properly secured
in the vehicle. Secure the child
restraint properly in the vehicle
using the vehicle safety belt or
LATCH system, following the
instructions that came with that
child restraint and the instructions
in this manual.
To help reduce the chance of injury,
the child restraint must be secured
in the vehicle. Child restraint
systems must be secured in vehicle
seats by lap belts or the lap belt
portion of a lap-shoulder belt, or
by the LATCH system. See Lower
Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH System) on page 3‑53 for
more information. Children can be

Black plate (51,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-51
endangered in a crash if the child
restraint is not properly secured in
the vehicle.
When securing an add-on child
restraint, refer to the instructions
that come with the restraint which
may be on the restraint itself or in a
booklet, or both, and to this manual.
The child restraint instructions
are important, so if they are not
available, obtain a replacement
copy from the manufacturer.
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
the vehicle—even when no child is
in it.
In some areas of the United States
and Canada, Certified Child
Passenger Safety Technicians
(CPSTs) are available to inspect
and demonstrate how to correctly
use and install child restraints. In the U.S., refer to the
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) website
to locate the nearest child safety
seat inspection station. For CPST
availability in Canada, check with
Transport Canada or the Provincial
Ministry of Transportation office.
Securing the Child Within the
Child Restraint
{WARNING
A child can be seriously injured
or killed in a crash if the child
is not properly secured in the
child restraint. Secure the child
properly following the instructions
that came with that child restraint.
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.

Black plate (52,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
3-52 Seats and Restraints
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
injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates and the
passenger seat is in a forward
position.
The vehicle may have a
passenger sensing system which
is designed to turn off the right
front passenger frontal airbag
under certain conditions.
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
Even if the passenger sensing
system, if equipped, 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 3‑37 for additional
information.
{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.

Black plate (53,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-53
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 System)
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.
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 attached 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.

Black plate (54,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
3-54 Seats and Restraints
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).
Top Tether Anchor
A top tether (A, C) anchors the
top of the child restraint to the
vehicle. A top tether anchor is built
into the vehicle. The top tether
attachment (B) on the child restraint
connects to the top tether anchor in
the vehicle in order to reduce the
forward movement and rotation of
the child restraint during driving or in
a crash.Your child restraint may have
a single tether (A) or a dual
tether (C). Either will have a
single attachment (B) to secure
the top tether to the anchor.
Some child restraints with top
tethers are designed for use with
or without the top tether being
attached. Others require the top
tether always to be attached. In
Canada, the law requires that
forward-facing child restraints have
a top tether, and that the tether be
attached. Be sure to read and follow
the instructions for your child
restraint.

Black plate (55,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-55
Lower Anchor and Top Tether
Anchor Locations
Second Row—60/40
H(Lower Anchor): Seating
positions with two lower anchors.
I(Top Tether Anchor): Seating
positions with top tether anchors.
For models with 60/40 second
row seating, the rear right side
passenger and center seating
positions have exposed metal
anchors in the crease between the
seatback and the seat cushion.
Second Row —Bucket
H(Lower Anchor): Seating
positions with two lower anchors.
I(Top Tether Anchor): Seating
positions with top tether anchors.
For models with second row bucket
seats, both rear seating positions
have exposed metal anchors in the
crease between the seatback and
the seat cushion.
Third Row Seat
I(Top Tether Anchor): Seating
positions with top tether anchors.
There is one top tether anchor that
can be used for either the third row
center or driver side seating position
but not both at the same time.
For models with a third row seat,
see the information following for
installing a child restraint with a top
tether in the third row. Never install
two top tethers using the same top
tether anchor.

Black plate (56,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2012
3-56 Seats and Restraints
To assist in locating the top tether
anchors, the top tether anchor
symbol appears near the anchors.
Second Row Seat—Bucket
For models with bucket second row
seating, the top tether anchors are
at the bottom rear of the seat
cushion for each seating position in
the second row. Be sure to use an anchor on the same side of the
vehicle as the seating position
where the child restraint will be
placed.
Second Row Seat
—60/40
For models with 60/40 second row
seating, the top tether anchors
are at the bottom rear of the seat
cushion for each seating position in
the second row. Be sure to use an
anchor on the same side of the
vehicle as the seating position
where the child restraint will be
placed.
Third Row Seat
For vehicles with a third row seat,
there is one top tether anchor at the
bottom rear of the seat cushion that
can be used for either the third row
center or driver side seating
position. Never install two top
tethers using the same top tether
anchor.